Wars of Love
by RikkuThief15
Summary: Yuna moves to Luca and meets a guy she can't stop thinking about. Evil girlfriends, tragic pasts, heartbreaking events. Will they ever be together? YunaxTidus RikkuxGippal
1. Past Memories and A New Beginning

Chapter 1

Past Memories and a New Beginning

Sunlight reflected brightly against the buildings and houses of an exquisite city. Birds glided gently in the warm, afternoon breeze. Not one cloud was in the beautiful blue sky. Babbling people could be heard down on the streets, talking casually to one another, not a care in the world.

In the center of the city, was a colossal building. It reached high up into the sky. At the top, the entire metropolis was visible. It was an extravagant sight, one that calms the nerves and relaxes the mind and body.

Upon the tall building was a young girl. Her hair was of a glossy, brunette coloring; her left eye was an adventurous green, while her right eye was a blissful, electric blue. A cool wind blew her hair against the sides of her olive skinned face.

"I can't believe this is happening." The girl thought to herself. She gazed out over the city, her eyes wearing a dreamy expression. "It was only yesterday that they told me…" She closed her eyes in remembrance.

The day before…

"I'm home!" Yuna called out happily as she placed her backpack on the kitchen table. Two people walked into the room, somber looks on their faces. Yuna stared at her parents. "What's wrong? Has something happen?" This eerie silence was working up her nerves.

"Honey, we need to tell you something." Her mother walked forward and took hold of her daughter's hand, leading her to the round dining room table. Yuna followed her without a fuss. This sounded serious.

"Please, tell me. What's wrong?" The suspense was killing her. Her parents had never acted as serious as they were now.

"Now please understand us when we say this Yuna, but don't get too upset. It's for the best." Her father said as he moved a chair to sit down beside her.

Yuna remained in silence, waiting to here the important news.

"You know that job offer your father got?" Her mother questioned. Yuna nodded her head in acknowledgement. "Well, he took it." Yuna was a little confused.

"Why is this a bad thing?" She wondered. "I'm proud of you Dad. Now, you'll get paid what you deserve." She said, a smile on her face.

"That's not all sweetheart." Her father took a long, deep breath before speaking again. "Although I will get paid more, I well, we all have to do something."

"Like what?" Yuna asked.

"We…we have to move to Luca." There was silence. No one spoke or moved an inch. Yuna was speechless. The news she heard was slowly beginning to sink in, one piece at a time.

Finally able to move her lips, she stood up from the table as fast as lightning, causing her chair to hit the wall. "What? What do you mean we're moving? We can't move! I've lived here my entire life! Bevelle is my home!"

"We know honey! It's all for the best though! You're father has worked his whole life to get this position and now he has finally earned it! Believe me, if he could do the job here he would, but he can't!"

"Oh, so he gets what he wants while we don't?"

"Yuna! How dare you say something like that about your father! You know how hard he works! He wants us all to be happy, but not everything works out that way in the end!"

"I know he does Mom, but I don't want to leave my friends behind and my city!"

"You'll make new friends and your old friends will always be there for you when you need them. Besides, I'm sure we can visit every now and then."

"How can you agree with this Mom? You told me when I was younger that you hate moving, because you had to do it a lot when you were younger!"

"Katrina…" Yuna's father placed a hand on her mother's shoulder.

"It's alright Braska. She's right. I did tell her that." She closed her eyes and sighed. "You're right Yuna. I don't like moving. This place has been the only place I can truly call my home."

"Mom I…I'm sorry. I forgot that when you moved, you must have felt exactly like I do. I'm sorry."

"It's alright. I understand. It's hard to make new friends and live in a whole new town, but in the end, it's the greatest thing. You meet new people and experience different things you would never experience if you stayed in the same place your whole life through."

Yuna thought carefully about her mom's words. "You're right Mom. I will accept what's happening. I'm sorry for getting so upset. I promise I'll make the most out of this experience."

"We didn't expect you to be happy about it. No one blames you for your reaction. We just want you to know that no matter where we go, we will always be together…" Her parents smiled kindly down at her.

Back to the present…

As her hair blew gently over her face, she reached her hand up, pulling the luminous locks behind her ears. "This is it…It's time to say good-bye to this place." Pushing herself off the railing, she turned round and walked towards the stairs.

The streets were packed with people walking. Yuna made her way slowly down an old side street. "This was where I made my first friend…" She thought to herself. A smile formed across her face at the memory…

"Where am I? I don't remember this road?" Yuna stood in the middle of a deserted, winding road. She began to shake in fear, being only six years old at the time. Suddenly, from behind her, a large pot fell over. "Who's there?" She called out in a small, trembling voice.

There was a moment's pause, but then, crawling out of the pot was a little girl around the same age as her. She shook her head and looked up at Yuna smiling. "Hey, my names Sierra! What's yours?"

"Y…Yuna."

"It's nice to meet you Yuna! Are you lost?"

"I don't know. I think so…" Yuna said shyly.

"Don't worry! I'll lead you right out of here in no time!"

"Really?"

"Yup! It's the least I can do for a friend!" Sierra grabbed Yuna's hand and began leading her down a path on the left.

"Friend?" Yuna asked her. "We just met though!"

"That doesn't matter! I can tell that we'll be the best of friends forever!"

"Best friends…" Yuna smiled. "Thanks."

Memory ends…

"She helped me find my way back home, and we're still the best of friends to this day. It was hard when I told her good-bye. We cried and cried. I promised her that we would keep in touch and visit on special holidays. I wish she could move, too. Life just doesn't work out that way, though." Yuna thought to herself as she continued down the crowded streets.

"Yuna dear. Please be careful in your new hometown. There will always be a place for you here child." An elderly woman had walked over to Yuna and given her a bouquet of beautiful flowers.

"Thank you Ms. Donnell. I will be careful." She accepted the flowers gratefully.

"How many times must I tell you to call me Grandma?" She said sternly, pointing her wrinkled old finger at Yuna.

Yuna laughed. "All right Grandma!" It was true, Ms. Donnell had always watched over her when she was younger, just like a grandmother.

"My how quickly you've grown! It seems like it was yesterday when I was telling you to keep your hands out of my flower bed! But no, you always would grab those flowers and pull them out by their stems, covering yourself in soil!" Yuna smiled remembering all the fun she had had as a young girl.

"My, how I wish Jonah could see you!" Yuna became silent. Jonah had been the sweet old lady's husband. He had been around when she was very young, but then he was sent away for a war that was taking place in what was now called, "The Calm Lands." She couldn't remember all that much about him. During the battle, her husband was killed, but she always said she was proud of him because he died protecting the people he loved.

"What am I saying? He is watching you. In fact, he's looking down upon us both at this very moment." The old woman gazed up at the infinite blue sky and squinted her eyes at the bright sun. "The sky is clear; that's a good omen you know?"

"I know…" Yuna said smiling. Ms. Donnell had always been slightly religious. She knew all about good and bad omens. Sometimes people would even ask her when they should do certain tasks!

"You will do fine in Luca dear child. You are blessed with so many things. Your parents are the best and your smile would light up the entire world even if it was covered in darkness." She patted Yuna gently on the back. "Take care. You are my oldest grandchild, but I have to let you go sometime."

Ms. Donnell always claimed that every child or baby in the village was one of her grandchildren. Everyone loved her so she was considered to be their grandmother. Yuna had been the first little girl she had gotten to take care of. Discovering that she liked it so much, she decided to take care of every child that was willing to call her Grandma!

"Thank you for everything! You've been here for me from the very beginning. I'll never forget you."

"You better not!" The old woman began to walk back into her small house, but turned around to say one last thing. "You better come back to visit me too!"

"I promise I will Grandma!" Seeing the woman smile at her words, brought Yuna a great since of joy and pride. "My mom was right. There are loads of people I care about, but they'll always be there for me in the end!"

The suitcase slammed shut. Yuna picked it up and carried it outside to where her parents were waiting for her by the large truck. "Hurry up Yuna!" Her father called out. She threw her last suitcase into the back of the truck where all the rest of the luggage was. They mostly just had clothes, pots and pans, and a few small pieces of furniture. They were buying new furnishings when they arrived at their new house.

"This is it…" Yuna's Mom said in a sad voice. "I'm really going to miss it here."

"Me, too." Braska agreed.

Yuna gazed out the window and stared at her house and then at the extravagant city beyond. The truck backed slowly out of the driveway and into the street. Yuna turned her head and took one last, final look at the only city she had ever called Home.


	2. Arendwell High School

Chapter 2

Arendwell High School

The journey seemed to last for hours. The truck rolled past mountains, hills, oceans, even rivers. It was never-ending. Yuna gazed out of the window, lost in the depths of her own mind. "I wonder what it's like in Luca…" She thought to herself.

At long last, they reached an enormously populated city. A sign overhead said "Welcome to Luca!" The buildings they drove by were spectacular. In the center of the city was a humungous stadium that towered over everything, casting its shadow over the ground. As they continued on through, they rode by a campus with the sign "Arendwell High School."

"That's your new school Yuna!" Braska said, trying to sound cheerful about it.

"Great…" She said in a whisper. She didn't like the idea of being the new girl. In her old school people would always pick and tease them.

Once past the school, the truck finally stopped. "Welcome to our new home!" Braska said while opening the car door for Katrina. Yuna stepped outside the vehicle and looked. The two women gasped in disbelief.

"How did we afford this?" Yuna finally spoke up.

"Well, when I accepted the job offer, they gave me an enormous bonus. Plus, with the money I'll be making now, it won't be a problem." Braska smiled with pride.

"Honey, it's unbelievable!" Katrina said, gaping. The house was two-stories, pearly white, balconies on the second floor, fancy windows, and beautiful flowers surrounding the area.

"I thought I'd keep it a surprise!" Her father said. "I even paid a little extra to get it already furnished!"

"I don't believe this!" Yuna said slowly. "This house is even more amazing then the one back home!"

"Do you like it?" Her mother questioned.

"Do I like it? I love it!" Without another word, she ran forward, opening the house's front door, and sprang inside.

"It looks like everything will work out after all." Braska said, placing his arm around his wife's shoulders.

"I think you're right…" She replied.

_Beep! Beep! Beep! _Yuna jumped out of her bed, scared half-to-death by the sound of her alarm clock. Quickly, she reached across her bed and hit the off button. The room was filled with silence once more. The time _6:30 AM _flashed on the clock.

"I don't want to go!" Yuna said, muffling her voice into her pillow. With a deep breath, she hoisted herself off the bed and walked over to her closet, throwing the door aside. Sleepily she reached her hand out and shuffled through her clothes. Seconds later she pulled out her outfit.

She slid into the soft fabrics and gazed at herself in the mirror. "Let's see, does this look okay?" Her skirt was a light, faded blue, the shirt a dark blue with short sleeves and a collar that cut down in a V. On her feet she wore white flip-flops that had small beads dangling from the starps. "Looks good enough for me!"

Braska stood in the kitchen above the stove, cooking bacon and eggs. Katrina was pouring glasses of fresh milk and placing them on the table. They both looked up when they heard footsteps on the stairs. Seconds later, Yuna came bounding in.

"Morning Sweetheart!" Her mother said cheerfully.

"Morning Mom, Dad!" She walked over towards the plate of bacon and eggs already fixed and piled some onto her plate. "This looks great!" She exclaimed.

"Well, I'm glad you think so." Her father said smiling.

As soon as Yuna sat down at the table she crammed everything in her mouth and drank her milk in three sips. "Thanks guys! Breakfast was great!"

"Whoa! What are you off to in such a hurry?" Her father asked suspiciously.

"It's the first day of school!"

"I knew you'd be excited about it!"

"What are you talking about? I just want to hurry so I can get this day out of the way, along with the next year of school in my life!" Before her parents could muster a word, she lept up from the table and grabbed her backpack off the floor. In the blink of an eye, she was gone.

Braska sighed. "Don't worry." Katrina said comfortingly. "She'll like it in a few days. She just needs time…"

"This is it!" Yuna stared at the school before her. "Arendwell High." The campus was pretty big; students were walking in every direction. "Now I need to go to the office and get my schedule." Taking in a deep breath, she walked onward.

"Excuse me, I'm here to pick up my schedule." Yuna stood in front of the office personnel's desk. The woman who had been typing on the computer looked up from the screen.

"Name please?" She asked.

"Yuna."

"Yuna…Yuna…ah, here you are. Your schedule is on this piece of paper and then this one has a map of the school on it. Have a great first day!" The lady said this all very fast. Yuna could tell she had been working in the office for way too long.

"Thanks…" She hesitated a little.

Gazing down at the piece of paper in her hands, Yuna looked at her classes. Let's see…1st period I have Alchemy, 2nd period it's foreign language-Al Behd, 3rd period-Physical Education, 4th period-Magic, next it's lunch, then 5th period is fighting styles, and last of all is 6th period History. I have to hand it to these schools, they have pretty good classes. Magic class sounds awesome!"

In the distance, the bell rang. "Time for my first class." She looked at the school map and attempted to find her way. Luckily she found it, with one minute to spare.

The classroom was average-sized. Posters of elemental compounds hung on the walls, along with potion ingredients in cabinets. The tables sat two at a desk. Most of the seats were already full. Glancing around, she noticed a table with only one person. She walked towards it and placed her books down.

"Is anyone sitting here?" Yuna asked hopefully. The girl at the desk turned to face her. She had glistening blonde hair and tanned skin. As soon as the girl looked at her, she knew she was an Al Behd. Her eyes were a swirling green.

"No, it's free!" The girl smiled kindly at Yuna.

"Thanks."

"No problem." The sound of chairs moving across the tiled floor and the babble of voices echoed around the classroom. "So, are you new here?"

Yuna was a little startled by her question. "Is it that obvious?"

"Well, you just seemed a little more lost then most students do." There was a slight pause. "By the way, I'm Rikku!"

"I'm Yuna. It's nice to meet you." The two girls smiled at one another. Just then, silence fell over the entire room. The classroom door flung open, hitting the wall with a bang. A girl walked in, followed by two more girls. They all walked to the desk in the back of the class and sat down. Yuna didn't understand why everyone was being so quiet.

"What's going on?" Yuna asked, her curiosity finally getting to her.

"That? That's just Ralana. She's the most popular girl in school, head cheerleader, and probably the most vicious person you'll ever meet!" Rikku glared over at the group of whispering girls.

"What about the other two?"

"Those are her two best friends. The one with the dark skin and hair, that's Donna, and the one with the short blonde hair, that's Leblanc. All together they would be the so called 'beau monde' at this school."

"Beau monde?" Yuna asked.

"Basically, they're all popular and beautiful people and everyone wants to know them!" Yuna got the point then. Those were the girls, just like in most schools, that got just about anything they wanted.

Ralana's hair was silky and blonde. It fell down to her shoulders, shiny locks framing her delicate features, her eyes a dark, swirling green. She sat leaning against the back of her chair, a nail file in her hand. Just as she began to move the instrument back and forth, the classroom door opened yet again and then slammed shut. The room went quiet as the teacher swept past the aisles of students.

"Welcome to your eleventh grade year of high school everyone! I hope you had a great summer, but now we must educate you. This is Alchemy class. In here you will learn how to make elixirs and potions of all kind. Some are to protect you, while others can be quite harmful. So please open your books to page 11."

Yuna sighed. "This is going to be a long year…"


	3. A Day in the Life of a New Girl

**Hey everyone. I'm really sorry that I've been taking a while to update this story. Normally I would update every weekend. You won't have to wait as long for the future chapters. Thank you all for your reviews and support. I hope you enjoy this chapter and my future ones as well! Thank you so much!**

**Sincerely,**

**RikkuTheif15**

Chapter 3

A Day in the Life of a New Girl

"Finally! I thought that class was never going to end!" Yuna walked down the hallway with Rikku after Alchemy.

"Don't worry. The first few days always seem pretty long, but it'll go by like that!" She skipped along beside Yuna, who was slowly making her way up a flight of stairs. "Come on Yunie!"

"Yunie?"

"Yup! It's your new nickname that only I can call you!" She smiled down from the top of the staircase. Yuna laughed.

"Yunie…I like it!" She reached the top and sped up to keep up with Rikku. "So, what's your next class?"

"Umm, History." Yuna's face saddened. "What's wrong?"

"I have my Al Behd language class next." Rikku's face split into a wide smile at this.

"That's so cool. I can help you out with that, no problem. I am Al Behd after all!" She opened her eyes wider, trying to make her spiral greens more visible.

"That would be really helpful! Thanks Rikku! I'll catch you later!" With a quick smile, Yuna dashed off to the room farther on down the hall.

Learning Al Behd was actually pretty fun. During the class Yuna learned how to greet someone, say goodbye, ask how they're doing, and how to answer back. It wasn't as hard as she had thought it was going to be. The teacher was a very nice woman. Her name was Nadala, but you were supposed to call her Miss Nadala. She was very experienced, her being an Al Behd herself.

After the bell rang dismissing them all, Yuna looked around for Rikku. Finally, she spotted her through the tumultuous amount of people. Rikku seeing Yuna jumped gleefully at her. "Yunie!"

"Hey Rikku!" Yuna then showed her excited friend how she could greet people and ask them how they're doing. Rikku couldn't stop jumping up and down. She told Yuna that she couldn't wait till she became really good at it, then they could talk secretly back and forth without everyone knowing what they were discussing.

The two began walking towards their next class. "Well, time for P.E." Yuna said looking down at her schedule.

"Oh, I love P.E. You get to play so many fun games! Plus, you don't have to study!" Yuna laughed.

"I'll see you later Rikku."

By looking at her map, Yuna was able to trace her way to the gymnasium. A little farther away she saw a track and football field. When she walked into the gym, she noticed a floating sphere pool. Inside it were to goal nets. "I wonder what our blitzball team's name is…" Yuna thought to herself.

Just behind her, she heard a whistle blow. "Everyone, sit down on the bleachers, ya?" The P.E. teacher walked out from his office. His hair was crimson red, standing straight up in a point that curled at the top, a blue bandana wrapped around his head.

"Hey Coach Wakka!" One student yelled from the bleachers as he sat down. Wakka just waved his hand in acknowledgement.

"Nice to see you too everyone! Anyway, back to the point. Your new P.E. clothes came in. They're over there. Get one that's your size and then go change in the locker rooms ya? And might I add the proper locker room!" A few of the guys in the stands laughed quietly. Yuna rolled her eyes.

Wakka blew his whistle again. Students jumped from the bleachers and ran towards the pile of clothes, trying to find their sizes. Yuna shuffled through quite a few before finding some that fit her. "Go change everyone!" The coach yelled.

Yuna walked past the weight training area and into the girl's locker room. On arriving there, she discovered the last person she wanted to be in her class. It was Ralana and her two friends. They were pushing other girls out of the way till they got the best lockers.

"I think I'll just use one over there." Yuna thought to herself. She walked around to the other side of the room, and changed into her exercise clothes, placing her skirt and top in the locker.

When she returned to the gym, Coach Wakka pointed for them to all go outside on the track. Some people moaned in complaint, but the coach just ignored them.

After they all reached the long, asphalt track, they turned to face Wakka for instructions. "All right, listen up everyone! Since it's the first day I'm gonna go easy on ya. Guys, you can play football if you want. Girls, you walk on the track."

A tough, tom-boyish girl spoke up from the mumbling students. "Are you saying that the girls can't play football if they want to?"

Wakka sighed. "No Cassandra, of course you can play football. I'm saying that most girls just want to walk the track ya? Now get to it class!" Cassandra smiled in triumph. Then the class ran off to their activities.

Ralana, Donna, and Leblanc walked on the track ahead of everyone. Yuna stayed a little ways behind them. She definitely didn't want to get on their bad side. Watching the blonde flip her hair over her shoulder, she saw her turn to face the middle of the field. Smiling, she waved and blew a kiss into the air.

"Great." Yuna thought quietly to herself. "What poor guy is she teasing?" Gazing across the field she looked for the receiver of her kiss. When she noticed them, her heart stopped. Standing next to the 50 yard line was the cutest guy she had ever seen. His hair was a shimmering blonde and fell over his face in layered spikes; his skin was tanned to a perfect bronze, and eyes an intense blue. In his ear he wore a silver earring and a necklace to match it around his neck.

She saw him smile and wave back at Ralana. Bringing her gaze back to the cheerleader, she saw her giggle with delight. "I wonder how she knows him…" Yuna said whispering. She glanced back across the field at the guy in the middle.

"Wasn't that sweet?" A blonde with spiked hair and a black patch over his left eye walked over and placed a friendly hand on his friend's shoulder. "Did you catch her kiss?" He asked teasingly.

"Shut up Gippal!" The other blonde said back defensively.

"Hey, I'm just sayin…" His voice trailed off. "Tidus…"

"Yeah?" He waited for him to speak. "What is it?"

"Hey, I hear that there's a new girl! I've been hearing about her from…"

"From who?" Tidus questioned.

"Oh, no one." Tidus glared at him suspiciously. "Don't worry about it man! Anyway, I'd like to meet her. Now that I think about it, I don't even know what she looks like."

Tidus rolled his eyes at his friend. "Whatever man."

"So, what do you think?" Gippal asked, poking him in the side.

"What do you mean 'What do I think?'"

"Duh, do you want to meet her, too?"

"Sorry, but I've already got someone."

"Right…" Gippal looked skeptical. "Come on, let's cool off and walk a few laps." As the two men walked towards the track Gippal gazed up into the cloudless sky and sighed. "He's got to be kidding himself if he thinks that Ralana is actually a trustworthy and unspoiled person. I can see right through her little schemes. Who am I to be talking though? I'm stuck with Leblanc and I don't even like her! She just keeps hanging on to me!"

Yuna continued to walk forward, staring at her shoes. "When will this class end? We're not doing anything exciting. We just keep going round and round in a circle." Suddenly, she heard Ralana yelling. She looked up to see the handsome blonde running with his friend over to the girl.

When they reached them, Ralana jumped up and wrapped herself around the blonde's arm. "It's about time you got here! I need my big, strong man to protect me from all the OTHER people!" At the word "other", Yuna saw Ralana look over her shoulder and stare right at her!

"What did I do?" Yuna asked herself in surprise. "I haven't even spoken a word to her!" The rest of the period continued on like this. It got annoying watching her hang all over the guy. After what felt like eternity, Wakka blew the whistle for them to change back into their normal clothes.

When the bell sounded, Yuna saw Ralana and her boyfriend walking off to class together. "She's so lucky…" Sighing, she headed in the opposite direction.

Magic was awesome. Yuna couldn't wait to learn more. They were going to be taught Black and White magic! Her teacher's name was Lulu; she hated it when people called her Miss Lulu. All the guys in the class drooled over her. Being a black mage herself, she dressed like one. She wore a dark green dress that went to the floor. Across the front were belts crossing one another, her leg just visible. The sleeves were long and hung off of her shoulders, with fur lining the neck. Her black hair went to her lower back in three braids, decorative chopsticks in the bun at the top.

Yuna thought she was incredible. Her attitude was really down to earth. She could be very angry, but then she would talk in her low, mysterious voice. Her skills were more superb than anyone Yuna had ever seen.

Around 12:20, she left for lunch. Walking over to an empty table she sat down and bit into her sandwich. Seconds later, Rikku came running over, a smile on her face. "How's your day going Yunie?"

"It's okay. My magic class is really cool! Lulu is the best teacher I have so far."

"Oh, I love Lulu! One day, I'm going to be just like her!" Rikku turned her face to the ceiling and put her hands on her hips, putting on a serious face. Yuna laughed, trying to picture Rikku not jumpy and happy like she always was.

"Good luck with that one!"

Her next class was fighting styles. The instructor was a Ronso named Kimahri. He didn't look very happy to Yuna. He never smiled and barely spoke. All the ronso ever did was point, make hand motions, do a demonstration with a weapon, and then hand it to a student. It was kind of confusing.

Yuna paid little attention, for her eyes were on something, or rather someone else. Also in this class was the blonde haired guy. The only disappointing part was that so was Ralana. Once again she was hanging on his arm. He didn't really seem to be noticing her though at the moment. In fact, to Yuna's enjoyment, Ralana was getting a little frustrated at his lack of attention to her. He was staring intently on the sword Kimahri was twirling around in demonstration.

The last lesson left on her schedule for the day was History. She had always liked the subject, but her teacher seemed a little, strict. Plus, his metal leg made her feel a little anxious. The professor's name was Nooj. He had been in a machine accident long ago and lost his leg. His acorn hair was in a ponytail that reached the floor, half moon spectacles on the bridge of his nose.

One hour later, the school day was finally over. Yuna walked down the streets of Luca. The city was so immense with buildings and people. She still didn't have a clue on how to get home, so just like that morning she grabbed a bus, telling the driver her destination.

When she walked into her house, her mother was standing in the kitchen. A sweet, peanut buttery smell was wafting through the air. "Happy first day of school!" Her mother said excitedly. "I thought I'd bake you a nice warm treat from after spending a long and tiring day with your nose in the books! They're peanut butter, your favorite!"

"Thanks Mom! They look delicious!" Yuna grabbed a cookie off the plate and bit into it. It was soft, just the way she liked them.

Her mother stared at her, still smiling. "So, how was the first day?"

"I have to admit, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I even made a new friend!"

"Oh that's wonderful honey! What's her name?"

"Rikku. She's really nice; you'll like her a lot."

"I knew you would make it through. See, it's hard at first, but in the end, you end up having a blast."

"Yeah…" Yuna dazed out as she grabbed a second cookie from the plate and placed it in her mouth. Her thoughts returned to the blonde haired guy, the guy she wanted, the guy that Ralana had.

**I hope you all enjoyed reading this chapter. Please review and let me know! By the way, I have a feeling that you guys are really going to like the next one! I have it planned out! I'm squealing right now just thinking about it!**


	4. Falling For a Guy

Chapter 4

Falling For a Guy

Bright rays of sunlight glimmered through the curtains enveloping the window. Birds could be heard chirping their morning songs to one another from branch to branch. A figure lying on the bed, rolled over onto their side, glancing at the nearby clock. In disbelief, they hurtled out of bed and raced towards the bathroom, grabbing clothes on the way. "I can't believe this! I'm late!" Yuna scrambled to put her makeup on as quickly as possible.

Downstairs, Braska could hear the panicking footsteps above, racing back and forth. "Don't worry Katrina; I'll drive her there on my way to work." His wife smiled sweetly.

"I feel terrible. I thought she was awake, but I should have made sure. Now she's going to be late and it's only her second day of school…" She breathed out deeply and closed her eyes.

"It's not your fault honey." Just as he finished, Yuna came racing into the kitchen, grabbing some nearby toast and mumbling that she was late. "Come on Yuna. I'll take you to school."

"Thank you so much Dad!" Father and daughter quickly left the house and drove away.

As Yuna raced through the school, trying to make it to her first period class as fast as she could, she noticed large banners hanging everywhere in the hallways. Some read "Beat the Coeurls!" and "Behemoths Rule!" Not realizing where she was going, she passed her classroom. Becoming aware of her mistake she quickly reversed her direction and entered through the door. The students were all laughing and talking loudly, paper balls flinging back and forth across the room. Just before she made it to her desk, one flew through the air and hit her right in the face.

"Sorry! I wasn't aiming for you!" A guy with short black hair said laughing. Yuna rolled her eyes as she slammed her books on the desk, making Rikku jump.

"Yunie, you made it! You're lucky that the teacher was running late herself, otherwise you probably would have gotten detention!"

"Great…" The brunette replied exasperatedly.

After class had ended, the girls were walking down the hall when a group of people ran through cheering and screaming. They were chanting while waving flags in the air. "What's going on today that has everybody so hyped up?" Yuna asked curiously.

"You don't know?" Rikku asked a little surprised. "Tonight is the first blitzball match of the season! We're going against our arch rival school the Yakatan Coeurls! Everyone is going to be there!"

"Are you going?" Yuna asked. Rikku giggled and blushed. "What?"

"Of course I am! I have to go! I have to see…" She began giggling uncontrollably, her face reddening like a cherry.

"You have to see what?" Yuna pleaded. She wanted to know what the blonde was so excited about.

Finally able to catch her breath, Rikku stood up tall and smiled. "Don't worry about it. I think that you should come with me! It will be loads of fun! We can cheer and scream as loud as we want! Please say you'll come! It will be so much better with you there! Please?" She stuck out her lip and tried to make a pouting face.

"Don't make that face. Of course I'll go with you. It sounds exciting. What time is it at?"

"I think its 8:00 till whenever. You never know how long the game will last. Sometimes there are fouls, replays, and all that other confusing stuff. I still don't understand it all that well. Anyway, afterwards there is always a huge party to celebrate our victory!"

"What if you lose?" Yuna asked.

"If we lose then…we ah…we celebrate the fact that we'll have a chance to win the next week!" Rikku scratched her cheek nervously. "No, I don't know what we would do…I mean we have lost before, but I don't really remember what we did." Yuna laughed.

"Hey, let's expect the best! Our team is going to rock! We're going to beat those Coeurls!"

"Yeah! That's right! You better believe it!" Rikku hopped up and down.

"After school, why don't you come to my house and we can help each other get ready for tonight?"

"Really? That would be awesome! We can pick out our outfits and try out tons of makeup!" Rikku looked like she was ready to bounce off the walls.

"Well, I'll see you in about two hours then!" Yuna waved as they split to go in opposite directions. "Tonight is going to be great!" She thought quietly to herself.

The clock struck two o'clock, a bell sounding on the intercoms. Classroom doors flung open, releasing the students who had been held captive by the day's educational needs. The air filled with the shuffling of feet and slams of shutting lockers. Yuna stood outside the school leaning against the wall, awaiting the arrival of her friend. She didn't have to wait long, for bounding down the stairs the bubbly girl came.

"Rikku, are you ready to go to my house?"

"You bet! I grabbed all my stuff, so I'm ready whenever you are!"

"Well then, shall we go?" They smiled and then walked off the campus towards the bus stop. The ride lasted only about ten minutes. When the bus came to a halt, the girls carefully stepped down, the automatic door closing behind them. "Here we are!" Yuna said, relieved that she was home once more.

Rikku turned around, her mouth hanging open in disbelief. "This…This is your house?" Her eyes were huge. "It's like a hotel! I mean, I have a big house too, but this one is so much nicer."

"I wasn't expecting it either. My Dad surprised my Mom and me with it. I've never lived in one this size before." They stared at the house a few more minutes before Yuna started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Rikku asked in confusion.

"Think about it. We must look pretty strange to be standing out here in the yard and just gawking at the house when all the other houses around here are the same size!"

"You're right!" Rikku began laughing out loud as well.

"Come on. Let's go inside. I'll introduce you to my Mom."

"Alright!" Together they walked in the front door and into the house. The first room was decorated with expensive antiques and rugs which led into a dining room within, containing an incredible chandelier. Rikku turned around as they walked through every room so that she wouldn't miss a single detail. Shortly, Yuna came to an abrupt stop causing Rikku to crash into the back of her.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to stop so fast!" Yuna apologized.

"Don't worry, it's my fault!" The blonde said as she rubbed her throbbing nose. "I'm fine."

"Yuna, you're home! I knew you must be coming in soon. How was your second day?" Katrina was sitting down in the living room reading a book in the tranquility of the house.

"Hey Mom. I'd like you to meet my friend Rikku! She's the one I told you about remember?"

Katrina placed her book on the table beside her and stood up. Rikku smiled and bowed her head slightly. "It's nice to meet you."

"The pleasures all mine. I'm so glad that Yuna was able to make a friend so quickly. You seem like a very sweet girl."

"Thank you."

Turning to face her daughter, Katrina smiled kindly. "Do you have any plans for tonight?" She asked.

"Yeah…would it be alright if I went to the big blitzball game tonight at eight? The whole school's going to be there." Yuna asked with hope.

"That's fine. I hope you have fun. I used to love going to those when I was your age. My, I remember wanting to go just so that I could see your father play! He was the best player on the whole team. How I would watch him play those games and practice each day after school was out. He was always so determined to win and be the best that he could be. I really admired him for that."

"You never told me Dad played blitzball." Yuna spoke out in amusement. Rikku was beside her giggling and blushing all at the same time.

"What's so funny about that?" Her mother asked Yuna at her amused voice.

"I'm sorry Mom. It's just that it's kind of hard picturing my Dad playing blitzball and being the star player. It doesn't really sound like him."

"People change…that's all." Katrina crossed her arms and sighed. "Anyway, is your friend alright?" Yuna glanced over and saw that Rikku was an incredible shade of red. "I would say it looks as if your friend has her own secret someone that she wants to see at the game!"

"What! No I don't! I have no idea what you're talking about!" Rikku blurted out, raising her voice. "I can laugh if I want to!"

"Um…we're going to go upstairs now to get ready. We'll see you in a little bit. Come on Rikku!" Yuna smiled at her mother and grabbed Rikku's hand, dragging her up the stairs, her face returning to its original color. When she reached her bedroom she shut the door. Turning to Rikku she crossed her arms.

"Am I in trouble?" She asked, poking out her lip.

"No, I just want to know what you keep on giggling about and blushing over!"

"Well…" Rikku moved her foot across the floor nervously.

"Come on Rikku! You can tell me! I'm your best friend. I promise I won't tell anyone. Trust me." She stared intently at the young girl, waiting for her reply.

"Well…alright. I'll tell you, but you have to swear that you won't tell anyone and I mean ANYONE!"

"Yes, I promise you!" Yuna sat on the floor before the Al Behd, ready for anything.

"Okay, what I'm about to tell you is top secret. Here it goes." She gulped and took a deep breath. "The reason I want to go to the game so bad is that I…I…I…"

"You…" Yuna said trying to help her continue on.

"The reason I want to go so bad is that I have a crush on Gippal! Okay, I said it! It's out in the open!"

"Gippal…who's he?"

"You don't know who Gippal is? Well, I shouldn't blame you. I mean, you did just move here a few days ago. Anyway, Gippal is the greatest guy in the world. He has blonde hair that spikes at the top and an earring!"

Yuna gulped. Rikku's description sounded just like the guy that she saw the day before. "Anything else?" She asked nervously.

"Oh, and he has a patch over his left eye. He's on the blitzball team. I go to each game just so I can cheer him on!" Yuna gave a sigh of relief realizing that they didn't both like the same person. She fought with herself on whether or not she should tell Rikku about him. In the end, she decided she would tell her later, when the time was right. For now, things would just stay the way they were.

"Whoa! It's already six! I didn't realize that we had been talking for that long! Come on Yunie; we need to get ready! Pick out your outfit!"

"Right!" Yuna arose from the carpet and walked to her closet. She pulled out several tops before Rikku finally agreed on one. She spent an even longer time deciding on shoes. About an hour later their hair was done and makeup applied. Yuna wore blue jeans with a sparkling silver belt and a tight black tube top. Around her neck was a necklace with a silver chain. Rikku's pants were black with an orange halter top that showed her midriff. Her hair was up in its usual ponytail with two braids at the bottom, feathers connected at the end.

"We look so hot!" The Al Behd exclaimed. "I can't wait to get there!" They stared in the floor-length mirror a little while longer until a voice sounded from downstairs.

"Yuna, isn't it time for you to leave? It's 7:26!"

"What? It's that late already! Come on, we better get going!" They darted out of the room and down into the kitchen.

"Yuna, I'll drive you there if you like." Katrina offered.

"No offense Mom, but we're just going to catch a bus. I'll see you later!" With that said, she quickly left, shutting the front door behind her, leaving Katrina there alone to her own thoughts.

"I guess she means that it's just not cool to show up with your parents…I understand that completely. I remember that time when I went to my first party. My Dad forced me to let him drive me there. I'll never forget it. When I arrived, everyone laughed at me. They all said I was a baby because I still needed my mommy and daddy there by my side. I know I definitely don't want Yuna to have to go through that." She let out a sigh and then headed for the room a few feet away. "I guess I'll get ready for bed. Braska won't be home until another hour." Turning on the bathroom light she turned the knob on the bathtub and let the water fill the basin.

"Are you ready?" Yuna and Rikku stood outside the blitzball stadium. Hundreds of screaming fans could be heard from the inside. "There's no turning back now. Once inside, they will never let you go until the end!" Yuna rolled her eyes.

"Would you stop trying to make this sound all terrifying and scary? It's not working."

Rikku placed her hands on her hips and lifted her head high in the air. "Fine, just take all the fun out of everything why don't you?" A few seconds later, she burst out laughing. "You know I'm kidding. I can't be mad at you. I only wanted to see if I could scare you."

"Enough joking around, let's go in. I can't wait to see the game! It will be my first one!"

"What! You mean to tell me that you've never been to a blitzball game before?" Rikku looked shocked.

"Well, at my old school we had a blitzball team, but they were never really that good, so nobody ever went to the games. The team really lost their pride and spirit."

Rikku smiled wickedly. "Well then, you're in for quite a surprise. Here in Luca, we take our games seriously. This city is all about blitzball. The competition is really fierce. You're in for something you've never seen or experienced. Do you still wish to go forward?"

"Rikku…" Yuna said in an exasperated tone. "You're doing it again." Just as she was about to continue, the blonde lowered her head in defeat. "Alright then, shall we go in to the dangerous abyss?"

"Hey, now you're doing it! That's not fair!" She threw her arms down by her side.

"I'm only messing with you. Let's go!" Laughing, the two made there way towards the stadium. The entrance was decorated with the same type of banners Yuna had seen earlier at school. After paying for the tickets they walked down a long aisle till arriving into the stands. It was of immeasurable size, brimming with people in almost every seat. The gargantuan sphere pool in the center was beginning to fill with water.

"Look, we're just in time. The beginning is the coolest part!" They claimed seats that were right at the very front, so as to get a good look at all the players and the action that would be taking placing in a short while.

"What's so cool about the beginning? Don't the teams just walk out, shake hands, and wish that the best team wins?"

"Yeah, about that…that's what your school did. The schools around here go over the top!"

"Over the top?" Yuna was getting a little annoyed at her dragged out explanations.

"Yeah, you'll see what I mean in a few minutes. Trust me, it's awesome!" Her swirling green eyes seemed to be spinning in circles from excitement. Suddenly the noise of the crowd died down. Yuna looked down to see a group of cheerleaders walking out onto the field. "Don't worry. It's after this that the best part comes!" Yuna nodded her head.

Forming three lines, the cheerleaders began dancing to music that began to play. All the while they cheered, they did back-handsprings and round-offs. As the music came to an end, the girls below ran forward and lifted one of their own into the air. Yuna gasped. She couldn't believe it. Rubbing her eyes to make sure, she gazed at the cheerleaders a second time. Sure enough, there on top of the human pyramid was Ralana, a large smirk spreading across her face as the crowd began to chant her name.

"Just ignore this part. They're coming out any second now." Rikku whispered into the brunette's ear.

"Who?" Yuna asked. Her question was soon answered as a low rumbling sounded on the stadium speakers and a spokesperson came on.

"Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the first blitzball game of the season. I know what you've all been sitting around here waiting for, so I think it's time we introduce to you the two teams!" The crowd screamed loudly. "The first team is the Yakatan Coeurls who are going against our home team, the Arendwell Behemoths!" The stands went wild with yells and screams. People held up signs, had their faces painted the school colors, and threw confetti through the air. "Here they come!" The announcer said excitedly.

Everything went quiet. Suddenly, music came over the loudspeakers, vibrating the ground underneath Yuna's feet. "This is it!" Rikku squealed in delight, almost not able to contain her self. Then, to Yuna's surprise, fireworks shot off into the night sky, showering the stadium with a dazzling array of lights and colors. As soon as the smoke cleared, there was a great _Boom!_ Gazing over to the right of the playing field, Yuna could see the opposing team walking out.

"Wait…They're not walking out…they're flipping out!" Each player that emerged performed forward and back-hand springs, landing on the ground and then lining up into two lines, creating an aisle. A figure walked out between the two rows of people and towards the center of the stadium. On the opposite side, the Arendwell Behemoths performed even better stunts. As the team lined up another figure arose.

"The captain of the Yakatan Coeurls is known for his great strength and tactics; give a big round of applause for Bickson!" On the other side of the stadium the fans went wild. "And now, give a big warm welcome to our own home team captain, Tidus!" Yuna gasped. She watched as the handsome blonde walked out onto the field, a blitzball against his left hip.

"I don't believe it…That's him…that's the guy." She couldn't take her eyes off of him until a certain cheerleader with long golden hair stepped right in her line of vision, blocking him from view. Ralana waved energetically at the captain, blowing him yet another kiss. The young man didn't take notice, for he was busy staring at his opponent. The two captains walked towards one another and shook hands.

"Ready to lose?" Bickson asked in an arrogant tone.

"In your dreams. All I'm looking forward to is watching you lose your pride."

"As if that would ever happen. Your team and you, you're all complete morons if you think you can win. This year we have a whole new strategy that even you can't outwit!"

"Give me your best shot!" Tidus and Bickson turned around and headed back for their teams. Each side huddled together, psyching themselves up.

"That's him! See, look Yunie!" Rikku suddenly exclaimed from out of nowhere.

"What?" Yuna asked, finally snapping out of her daydream.

"The blonde down there on the right of Tidus, that's Gippal! They've been friends for a long time. He's so cute, I can't stand it!" Rikku leaned far over the rail trying to get a better view of her crush.

"Rikku!" Yuna yelled out as she noticed her friend was beginning to slip. It was too late for the warning. Before she could reach out and grab her hand, she had already fallen too far over the edge. Rikku felt her body slide over the rail and then the drop. She screamed out in hopes of someone catching her. The entire stadium filled with gasps and screams at the sight of the falling young girl. "Rikku!" Yuna cried out one last time as she leaned against the railing, watching her friend fall to the ground far below.

Tidus and his team were all talking in low voices about a strategy when they heard the crowd's gasps. Glancing up at the stands, they saw a figure hurtling down from stands that were about five-stories high. "Oh my gosh!" Letty, a fellow player exclaimed. The figure was getting closer to the ground every second that was wasted.

"Somebody catch her!" A woman in the stands cried. Without knowing what he was doing, Gippal shot away from his teammates.

"Gippal!" Tidus called out.

"Don't worry! I'll catch them!" He ran until he was right under the figure, bracing himself for the impact. Rikku flailed around in the air till she landed on something that didn't feel like the hard dirt.

"Am I dead?" She thought quietly in her mind. Slowly she opened her eyes, preparing for the worst, but instead blushed like mad. Gippal, who had been trying to save her, had fallen on the ground at the impact. Now he lay in the grass with her on top. She quickly rolled over to the side and sat up.

"Excuse me, but are you alright?" He asked her in a concerned voice.

"Who me? Yeah, I'm uh…I'm fine!" She gulped and began laughing out of nervousness.

"Anyone who just fell from four-story high stands doesn't sound fine to me."

"Honestly, I'm totally…totally…" Rikku has been trying to stand up, but unfortunately her legs just didn't want to support her weight. "Okay, so maybe I'm just a little shaken up."

"Here, why don't you let me take you back up to you're seat." He smiled kindly down at her, making her cheeks flush.

"Um that would be…ah…that would be…" Rikku was so embarrassed and shy that she could barely speak the words. Before she could answer the question with a correct answer, Gippal had walked over and lifted her into his arms. One hand supported her around the shoulders, another underneath her legs. Her face turned beet read.

"Hey, are you alright?" Tidus, the team captain ran over towards the two.

"She's fine. I'm just gonna take her back to her seat and then I'll be back down for the game."

"Alright man." As he watched Gippal walking away, he smiled to himself. "That's Gippal for you…He's always go to be the hero." Tidus ran off back towards the others and continued the group huddling.

"Are you ready to go?" Gippal asked the girl in his arms. Rikku just smiled in reply. She was too afraid to say anything in fear that she might embarrass herself further. He walked off the field and to the stairs, carrying her all the way to the top.

"I can't believe this is happening…especially to me! This must be a dream. No, it can't be! I never have dreams like this!" She gazed up at his face, taking in each of his handsome features. The sunlight reflected off each strand of hair. Rikku sighed. "He's so warm and strong. I could stay like this forever." She could feel his biceps rippling as he carried her up the last flight of stairs.

"Which one is your seat?" He asked her. Rikku quickly awoke from her daydreaming and pointed at the one towards the front. As soon as she caught site of Yuna she jumped out of Gippal's arms and ran over to her.

"Yunie!" She cried out. Yuna lifted her head from her hands at the sound of her name.

"Rikku! I'm so glad you're okay! I thought I was about to lose my best friend!" The two girls ran forward and hugged. "It must have been terrifying!"

"It was! I was so scared!" She started jumping around and throwing her hands out in all directions, trying to reenact what happened.

"I guess you're feeling much better." Gippal said from behind them.

"Oh, right…um…I…I…" Rikku stammered to get her words out. Yuna nudged her right in the side. "I just want to say thank you. Yes, thank you for saving my life."

"The pleasure was all mine." As he began to step away he glanced over at the brunette next to her. "I don't think I've seen you before."

"Me?" Yuna asked. "Well, I just moved here."

"Oh, so then you're the new girl I've been hearing about." He said smiling.

"Yeah, probably." She replied shortly.

"What's your name?"

"Her names Yuna! Well, to me she's Yunie!" Rikku blurted out. She covered her mouth in shock at her outbreak.

"What she said." Yuna said smiling friendly. "In case you were wondering, her name is Rikku." She raised her eyebrow at her blonde friends glare.

"Yuna and Rikku…they're nice names…Well, I gotta go. A great game awaits me. I'll catch ya later!" He waved as he turned his back on them and raced back down the stairs and out onto the field.

After he left, Yuna turned around to Rikku squealing. "You have to tell me everything! I'm sure it was such a burden to fall off and then be rescued by the guy you've been talking about for days! Come on I need details!"

"Well…" Rikku said in an unsure voice. Then her face split into a wide smile. "Okay, I can't hold it in any more! I'll tell you everything you want to know!"

**Well, there's chapter four for all of you. I'm sorry it took me such a long time to update it. I got really busy with school and work; I really didn't have any time. It's here now and that's what matters! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I was squealing while typing it! Please look for future updates. I have some interesting plans for the upcoming chapters. Also look for other stories I'll begin adding soon. Thanks for all your support and reviews! It's very much appreciated.**

**RikkuTheif15**


	5. The After Party

Chapter 5

The After Party

Cheers echoed throughout the crowd. The Behemoth's had won. Yuna and Rikku stood up from there seats screaming and waving flags with their team's logo upon it. "I can't believe we won!" Yuna cried out over all the other people.

"I know!" Rikku exclaimed excitedly. "That was a close shot, but Tidus nailed it right at the buzzer! No wonder he's the team captain!"

"Yeah…" Yuna looked down upon the field at the blonde walking towards the judges to receive a trophy for his team. The stadium lights glistened off the gold as he held it high in the air, his teammates crowding around and lifting him high into the air.

"Yuna?" Rikku asked as she saw Yuna's strange look. She didn't answer. Following her gaze, it landed on Tidus. "Yuna…you…" Finally realizing that she was talking to her, she snapped out of her daydream.

"Sorry Rikku, did you say something?"

There was silence between the two. "You…um…never mind."

"What is it?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it Yunie! Everything's fine!"

"If you say so."

Rikku gave one of the biggest smiles she could muster. "Come on! There's a party to go to!" Reaching out, she grabbed Yuna's arm and yanked out of the stadium. People around them also seemed to be heading the same way as them.

"So where's this party at?" Yuna wondered.

"It's at Datto's house!"

"Datto, who's that?"

"He's just one of the guy's on the team."

"Oh." After their short discussion, they saw everyone getting into their cars ready to go. "What are we riding in?"

"Over here!" A screeching male voice called out through the air. Yuna looked across the parking lot and saw a guy with a Mohawk and had overalls on. "Who the heck is that?"

"Oh no!" Rikku rolled her eyes. "Go Yunie, just keep on walking.

"What, who is it?" As Rikku pushed her in the opposite direction, the male cried out even louder this time.

"I know you can hear me Rikku! Ride there with me!" The girl clenched her fists and spun around on her heel.

"Would you shut up please? Why are you here to start with? Go home!"

"I came to see the game! Plus, Dad wanted me to make sure you were okay."

"What! I'm old enough to take care of myself. Ugh, Dad's going to here it from me when I get home!"

Hey, Rikku?" She gently poked her shoulder. "Do you mean to say that this guy is your brother?"

The blond turned around with exaggerated tears falling down her face. "Unfortunately, yes."

"What's wrong with him?" Just as she asked that question, she noticed that he had taken his gaze off of his sister, but was now staring intently at her.

"Please, you can ride to the party with me!" He said.

"No! We refuse to go with you!" Rikku yelped out.

"Well, maybe we should." Yuna declared, scratching he cheek with embarrassment. He was now down on his knees in front of her crying. At her comment his face came up, hope filling his eyes.

Glaring at her brother she nodded her head, rolling her eyes. "Fine we'll rise with you, but only so that you'll whining in public!"

"Yippee! I promise I'll get you two there in a flash! Hop in!"

The two girls scrambled to get into his car. It was pretty old. The paint wearing off badly and the doors wouldn't open. Luckily it was a convertible, making it easier to climb into.

Twenty minutes later they pulled up to a house, people packed everywhere within. "This is so exciting! Let's go Yunie!" The girls ran inside pushing past the guys blocking the entrance. Music was booming through speakers set up in every corner. Everyone was jumping up and dancing.

Just as they reached a small clearing and began to dance, Rikku gasped. "What is it?" All the girl could do was point. Yuna turned around and saw Gippal. Just as he looked over the crowd, he saw her. "Ah! He's coming this way! Hide me Yunie! I don't think I can face him again after that!" She jumped behind Yuna and grabbed her shoulders.

"Hey, how's everything going? Did you enjoy the game?" He smirked.

"The game was awesome! I had a lot of fun!" Yuna replied. She noticed that he was looking around, and then gazed back at her.

"Where's your friend?" He asked curiously.

"My friend…she's uh…" She glanced nervously over her shoulder and then back at him.

"Is she hiding behind you?" He asked, crossing his arms.

Just then Rikku popped out from behind her and laughed. "I wasn't hiding…I…I dropped and earring and was looking for it! Yeah, that's it!" Raising an eyebrow at her he sighed.

"Right. Of course you were." A male's voice began coming closer. Gippal turned around just as another guy ran into him.

"Sorry man, I didn't see you there." The guy looked up. "Oh, it's just you Gippal."

"Hey Tidus." After their greetings, Tidus noticed the two girls standing before them. Gazing at the blonde first he smiled, but as he looked to the girl beside her his eyes stopped. Yuna smiled and blushed furiously.

"He's staring right at me!" She thought nervously in her head. "Just play it cool."

"Gippal, I don't think you've introduced me to your new friends. I don't remember ever seeing them before.

"Oh, sorry. The girl with the blonde hair is Rikku, and that's…I'm sorry, what's your name again?"

"Yuna…My name's Yuna."

"Yuna, huh? That's a pretty name." Tidus smirked.

"Tidus, where have you been? I was looking everywhere for my champ!" Ralana strode out from between three girls and wrapped her arms around Tidus's back. Gazing around at the others, her eyes stopped on Yuna. "Oh, I should have known! Is she bothering you? I would understand! All she does is follow me around! She probably wishes that she was me!"

"She wasn't bothering me…not at all." He was still gazing at the brunette before him. "I was just meeting her." Ralana didn't like the way he was talking or the look on his face.

"Come on Tidus. Let's go. I don't want to be here anymore. It's so crowded and noisy. Let's go baby!"

Finally looking down at his girlfriend, he seemed to notice her for the first time. "Uh, yeah…somewhere else."

"We'll see you later Gippal." Ralana said smiling to him. Before leaving, she glared at Yuna, a look of uncertainty in her eye.

After the couple left Gippal smiled at them. "Don't mind her; she always gets jealous if Tidus talks to any girl, even Leblanc and Donna." As if on cue, Leblanc came hurling out of the crowd, hugging Gippal.

"Gippal! I thought I had lost you!" She whined.

"Really? I was thinking…the exact same thing!" He falsely laughed in and pulled himself out of her embrace. Clearing his throat he turned to Yuna and Rikku again. "Well, I guess I'll see you two at school."

"Of course, where else would we be?" Rikku asked, still tensing because of Leblanc trying to hang all over him.

"I'll be keeping an eye out for you." Turning around he waved and walked off, Leblanc in tow.

Rikku sighed. "I can't believe that happened! I don't think anything could ruin the rest of this perfect…" Just as she finished her statement, Brother came tumbling in.

"Your name's Yuna, isn't it? Will you please dance with me?"

"No one want's to dance with you!" Rikku clenched her hand into a fist and punched him right in the face, knocking him into darkness on the floor.

"I think that was a little much." Yuna said exasperatedly from beside her.

"He deserved it! Come on, let's get out of here. I'll drive us back. We can just throw him in the back seat."

"Okay…" Yuna replied. They carried Brother between the two of them. Rikku had his hands, Yuna his feet.

"I told him he needed to stop eating all those chips, but nooo, he wouldn't listen now would he?" Reaching the car, they slowly lifted him into the back seat, climbing in the front their selves. Rikku stuck the keys into the ignition, turning it. "Let's go home."

"Right!" Yuna said smiling. They drove out onto the road and into the fallen night sky.


	6. Confrontations of Hatred

Chapter 6

Confrontations of Hatred

Rikku awoke early the next morning at Yuna's house, slapping her friend's face with a pillow in order to wake her up. Yuna slid out of the bed, landing on her head. "Ow!" She cried out, all the whilst rubbing her hand on her now lumping forehead. "Geez, thank you could be a little gentler next time?"

"Maybe!" Her preppy friend answered. "Hurry up Yunie and get dressed! We have so much to do today; I can't wait to get started!"

"We do? What's so special about today?"

"It's Saturday, which means…Come on Yunie, guess!"

"Um…I give up." She replied, not even trying to figure it out.

"It's SHOPPING DAY!"

"Oh, right. Of course, how could I have forgotten something as important as that?" Yuna said sarcastically.

"Come on Yunie! I promise you it will be loads of fun! Please?" Sticking out her bottom lip she began to make whining, pouting sounds like a puppy.

"Of course I will. I'll do anything to make you stop making that noise!" Yuna laughed. Rikku leapt high into the air, throwing the sheets off the bed in the process. Yuna glared over at her now standing friend who laughed while rubbing the back of her head embarrassedly.

"Ha ha! Am I bad?"

"Wow! The mall here in Luca is incredible!" Yuna turned in circles so as not to miss a single store. It rose up for three floors, people rushing back and forth, their purchases in hand. Large columns stood beneath the balconies and statues stood in the center, water flowing around them.

"What do you think we should go for first? We could do shoes, dresses, skirts, and accessories! Oh, this will be so much fun!" Rikku could hardly contain herself.

"It doesn't matter. I mean, in the end we would have gotten around to them all, right?" Yuna replied.

"Alright then! I guess it'll be shoes!" The squealing girl grabbed her friend's hand, dragging her towards the Shoe Carnival nearby.

It took the girls several tries before they both found the perfect pair of shoes. Rikku decided on some sandals that wrapped up around the lower legs. Yuna's were four-inch stiletto heels. She wasn't all that crazy about them, but Rikku kept bickering her, saying how she had to get them.

A little ways away, three girls entered the mall, designer purses in hand. "Well girls, are you ready? Get those credit cards out! It's time to do some shopping!" Ralana flipped her golden locks away from her eyes. Just as the trio began forward, Ralana through her hand in front of her followers. "Hold it!" She gazed across the crowd racing past. "Would you look at that? It seems we have some desperate little wanna be's in our wake. Come on girls! Let's play a few games with them!"

"Can we please take a break? I'm so hungry!" Yuna cried out.

"Fine! We really need to work on your shopping endurance!" Rikku sighed. They walked to the food court and stood in a line for Italian food. "Two plates of spaghetti please!" In a matter of minutes, a tray of steaming pasta was in Yuna's hands.

"Remind me why I'm carrying this again?"

"Because, I'm trying to improve your shopping endurance!"

"We're not shopping though!"

"That doesn't matter! All that matters is…"

"Okay! I get it Ri-!" Yuna was cut off as she felt her feet slipping out from under her.

"Yunie!" Rikku yelled. It was too late. The tray flew out of her hands, the pasta flying in the air, only to land on Yuna's blouse. Laughter arose in every corner of the food court. However, three familiar giggles caught Yuna's attention. Looking a few feet away, Ralana, Donna, and Leblanc could easily be seen. Anger welled up inside of her.

"Yunie! Are you okay? That was terrible! Here, let me help you up. Let's go to the bathroom and try to get that stain out!" Rikku pulled her off the tiled floor and hurriedly lead her into the restroom.

"That was so embarrassing!" Yuna angrily said, scrubbing the large red stain on her shirt. "The nerve of her!" Rikku turned her head.

"What are you talking about?"

"Didn't you see them? Ralana and the other two girls! They were at a table a few feet away!"

"What! You're joking right? You mean they were there the entire time? Did they do it?"

"I know they did!" She rubbed harder, but soon gave up. "It's not going to come out with just soap and water."

"Do you want to go back home?" Rikku asked quietly.

"Yeah, I would. I'm really sorry Rikku. I know we didn't finish our shopping."

"Don't worry about it Yunie! All that matters is that you're happy. I know I wouldn't want to go shopping with a stain that big on my shirt!"

Yuna grimaced. "Gee, was that supposed to make me feel better?"

"Maybe…A little?" Rikku replied, raising her voice to a mere squeak.

"Let's get out of here!" Yuna said heading toward the exit. Once the two were outside the mall, a red sports car drove up beside them. The windows rolled down.

"What a coincidence! Fancy meeting you here!" Ralana lifted the pink sunglasses up into her hair. "Nice shirt."

Yuna clenched her fist. "No thanks to you!"

"Look at it this way. The color really suits you. It was for the best."

"Why you…!"

"Oh, before I forget, I have another gift for you!" The back car windows rolled down. Before they could move out of the way, Donna and Leblanc three water balloons right at them. "Try to stay a bit more hydrated. It could really help your pasty complexion!" Pulling her sunglasses back down, the car screeched off around the corner.

"That little…!" Yuna glared out across the parking lot. "I swear! If she does anything else to ruin my life, I'm going to go on the offensive. I can't take anymore of this!"

"Aw! She got my new shoes wet!" Rikku whined.

"Come on Rikku! We're leaving!"

"Right!" She stood up from her sulking position on the asphalt and hopped into the other side of the car.

The ride back was pretty silent until Rikku finally spoke. "So, what are you gonna do?"

"I'm just going to act like nothing has happened. However, if she pulls anything else off on me, then that's it!"

"Why do you think she has such a grudge against us?" Rikku wandered aloud to herself.

"I don't know!" Yuna said. "All I care about is getting through school tomorrow without having to see her face again!"

"I know exactly what you mean…" Rikku said, wondering quietly too herself as she gazed up at the clouds through the sunroof.

**Hey Everyone! Sorry, I know this chapter is pretty short, but I was kind of rushed for time. I gotta start somewhere though, right? Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Don't worry, in the next ones there will be a lot more Tidus and Yuna and Rikku and Gippal! You know, all that good stuff. Thanks for reading my story! I love you guys!**


	7. A Catfight In Softball

Chapter 7

A Catfight In Softball

The next day at school, Yuna constantly looked in all directions, trying her best to stay out of the view of Ralana. She didn't want to see her unless she absolutely had to. Rikku was even avoiding her. "She doesn't hate you! Why are you hiding?" Yuna commented.

"Oh, she hates me…more than you know…" Yuna raised her eyebrow in confusion.

"What are you-?" Before she could finish she was cut off by another voice.

"Hey, what's up guys? Why are you whispering?" Yuna and Rikku gazed up from their slightly hunched positions at Gippal. Rikku gasped and jumped with shock.

"Gi…Gippal! What are you doing here? I didn't here you coming, did you Yunie?"

The blonde sighed. "Why else would I be here except for school?" He placed his hand underneath his chin and smirked. "Well, I do come for the girls, too." Rikku just kept laughing embarrassedly. Before anymore could be said a figure in bright pink appeared, hurtling towards Gippal.

"Where were you the other night? At the party I was dancing with you, then when I turned around you were gone! I was looking for you everywhere!" Leblanc cried out frantically while grabbing a hold of his hand.

"Really…I mean, sorry about that. I got an emergency call, so I had no choice but to go."

"What was the emergency?" She pressed the matter further.

"The emergency…it was uh…you know…" He glanced around the hallway, looking for ideas. "It was… my dog."

"Your dog?" Leblanc asked curiously. "I didn't know you had a dog…"

"That's because I just got it. It's a puppy. You see, it got really sick that night so I had to leave so that I could take care of it!" As he had been talking he had slowly worked his way out of her ever tightening hold she had on his hand.

"That poor little puppy! Maybe I should come over and help you take care of him!"

"NO! I mean, you don't need to do that. He's much better today!"

"If you say so." There was a small pause. "Let's go to class together my little Gippy!" He winced at the name.

"Actually, I still need to get some things out of my locker and run by the office. I'll meet you there in a little bit." Leblanc's face saddened.

"Fine, but I'll be waiting." She stood on her tiptoes and placed a small kiss on the center of his cheek. Then, she turned around flipping her hair over her shoulder as she passed the other two girls.

An awkward moment of silence stayed between the three people left as they looked from one to the other. Gippal cleared his throat. "So, that was kind of embarrassing…I guess we should all head on to class." They started off down the hallway quietly.

"So…" Rikku finally spoke up. "How long have Leblanc and you been going out for?" Gippal glanced around the hallway quickly before answering.

"Going out? Now where would you get a crazy idea like that?" He laughed.

"It's not funny! That crazy idea would occur to anyone who saw you two! First, she's always following you, second, she hangs on you, and third, she kissed you! Those are some pretty obvious signs! Right Yunie?"

"Um, yeah." Yuna answered in a hazy voice.

"So, you noticed that did you?"

"Noticed! How could anyone not notice!" Rikku cried out in frustration.

"You see, SHE thinks we're going out. Me, we're just more of acquaintances."

"You don't seem to be telling her that or trying to make her stop. I mean, you act annoyed whenever she comes around."

"Trust me, I've told her I didn't like her at the very beginning and way too many times to count after that, but she still refuses to believe it. I've just given up now." He gazed down at Rikku. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were jealous!"

"WHAT!" The Al Behd screamed.

"You want to go out with me, don't you?" He smiled.

"WHAT! NO I DON'T!" Rikku began to panic, so Yuna decided to back her up.

"Actually, to tell you the truth, I was wondering all that, too. I mean, it was suspicious."

He deeply sighed. "Yeah, you're right." A silence passed between them, only the fast panting from Rikku audible. "Anyway, I better head off to class."

"Good luck with keeping Leblanc off you when you get there." Yuna laughed.

"Thanks, I'll definitely need it!" He smiled at the brunette and then walked over towards Rikku. "Hey, I was just joking around. I didn't mean to upset you."

"Upset me? No, you didn't do anything like that!" She laughed out of nervous energy. "It just caught me off guard a little bit, that's all!"

"You know what?" Gippal asked her.

"What?" Rikku asked curiously.

"You're pretty cute."

"I'm…WHAT!" Before she could say anymore he had walked off, a large grin plastered across his face.

"I'll check you girls out later!"

"Alright!" Yuna laughed. "He's definitely the class clown! Come on Rikku, we need to get to our classes too…Rikku?" Yuna turned around and saw her friend sitting on the cold, tiled floor, her eyes in a haze. "Are you okay?"

"He…he said…he said I was cute…" Yuna rolled her eyes.

"I heard him. Now come on or we're gonna be late!" Their morning classes were over before they knew it and still there had been no sign of Ralana. The two girls trudged down the hallways in exhaustion. "You can make it Rikku. There are only a few classes left."

"Yeah, but you're not in any of those classes! From here on out, I'm on my own!"

"I know. I have P.E. next."

"I wish I had P.E. All you have to do is play games! It's not fair!"

"I wish that was all it was, too." Yuna replied.

"What do you mean?"

"Ralana's in that class, too." Rikku gasped.

"Yunie, I'm so sorry! Good luck! Kick her butt! I know you can do it!"

"I hope so…" Yuna sighed. The girls split apart, heading towards their next class. The brunette gulped. "Here I go…" She mumbled quietly to herself.

Girls talked back and forth excitedly to one another about the latest gossip in the locker room. Yuna dressed herself quickly and placed her school clothes in the locker. Just then, a hand slammed down on its door, causing it to shut loudly. Glancing to her right, she saw the person she had least wanted to see that day.

"Look girls! If it isn't Miss Boyfriend stealer!" She exclaimed to Donna and Leblanc whom stood behind her.

"What are you talking about?" Yuna asked calmly.

"Oh please. Don't act so innocent. You talk to my guy and then to Leblanc's?"

"I wasn't trying to steal anyone's boyfriend!"

"Right, and I'm a shoopuff! Come on girls. We've got a softball game to win." With that said, they strolled out of the locker room, laughing all the while.

"This is going to be a bad class period!" Yuna thought inwardly to herself.

The sun brightly lit the field, bases spread out several yards apart. The class gathered around the coach, awaiting his instructions. "Listen up! The girls are gonna play softball, ya? Guys, you'll be runnin on the track!" A group of moans came from this comment.

"The track?" A boy cried out. "Why?"

"You guys need to be more responsible, ya? This will hopefully teach you some discipline while you're at it! Now get movin!" The boys all jogged from the field and onto the track. Coach Wakka now turned his attention to hi female students. "Now ladies, when you're up to bat, it's alright if you accidentally knock one of those guys senseless with the ball. I'm going to the office to pick up some blitzball equipment, but don't tell the guys that or they'll throw a party or somethin. Other than that, get started!"

Yuna lined up with all the other girls behind the tall fence. Ralana and the others were on the opposing team, while she was with a few athletic girls and several bookworms. As the line grew shorter, she became more and more nervous. She watched as the girl ahead of her hit the ball far out into the outfield and raced all the way to third base. "Next!" The catcher called out. She gulped. _Here goes nothing!_

Out on the track, the guys jogged endlessly. "How long do you think we have to keep going for?" A tired young man complained.

"Probably until Coach Wakka tells us to stop!" Gippal answered back. A deep voice sounded from behind him.

"I don't even see him out here!"

"That doesn't mean anything!"

"Yeah, he's probably hiding up in a tree again, watching us to see if we'll stop. I'm definitely not falling for that again!"

"Hey Tidus! Wait up!" Gippal ran faster to catch up to his friend. "Do you always have to run so fast?"

"Sorry." He quickly slowed his pace down.

"So, where did Ralana and you go?" Gippal asked.

"What are you talking about?" Tidus questioned.

"You know, after the party on Friday night."

"I took her home."

"What?"

"She wanted to go to a movie, but I said I wasn't feeling too good."

"You dog! You went back to the party without her, didn't you?"

"I went to the beach."

"The beach? Uh, right. You practice for the games way too much man. You gotta loosen up some. Anyway, guess who I talked to this morning?"

Tidus raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

"Those two girls I introduced to you at the party. I told the blonde that I knew she wanted to go out with me! I was just joking, but she was totally freaking out! You should have seen the look on her face! She's pretty funny!"

"So, it sounds like you're becoming good friends with them…"

"Yeah, we should definitely get them to hang out with us sometime."

"Gippal?"

"Huh?"

"The other girl, you know, the new one? What did she say?"

"Not much. She was backing her friend up. They both teamed up against me until I told them that I didn't like Leblanc."

"I knew you didn't! Just dump her then!"

"Trust me, I've tried! She just keeps hanging on me! It never stops!"

Tidus laughed and punched his friend in the shoulder. "Sounds like you've got a problem then!" As they jogged past the softball field, Tidus glanced over at the home base. Yuna walked to the plate bat in hand.

"Hey, the new girls turn to bat! Let's see how she does!" Gippal said with a smile.

_I can do this! Just relax and keep your eye on the ball! _Yuna glanced across the field. Ralana stood on second base, Donna in the outfield, and Leblanc on first. Ralana walked towards the pitcher and whispered something in her ear. She nodded her head and then returned her attention to the batter. Turning to the side she lifted her arms, pulling them back. Yuna readied herself, tightening her grip. The ball flew from the tips of her fingers, flying towards its target. Yuna pitched her arms forward, a loud clang from the metal bat rang through the air. The ball shot far across into the outfield.

She raced towards first base. Leblanc jumped in front of it, blocking the way. Yuna pushed past her and continued towards second. Donna picked up the ball and threw it in Ralana's direction. Just before reaching the base, she saw her smile. Then without warning, Ralana stuck her foot out in Yuna's path. The brunette tripped, tumbling onto the hard earth below. She landed stomach, face skidding across the dirt. Looking up into the bright sky she saw Ralana catch the ball and walk over to her. With her gloved hand she reached down and touched Yuna's shoulder. "You're out!" Glancing down to her left hand, she saw it had been inches away from being safe. _I was so close._

"Tidus! Where're you going?" Gippal yelled out.

"I'm gonna make sure she's okay?" Tidus dashed towards the field, Gippal now following close behind him.

Yuna slowly sat up as she watched Ralana and her gang walk off the field and towards the locker room. The other girls followed them as well. No one wanted to be seen defying Ralana. "YUNA!" At the sound her name she slowly gazed up into the concerned face of Gippal.

"Gippal!" She said in surprise.

"Are you alright?" Another voice sounded from beside her. She gasped. It was the guy from the party, the guy she had a crush on.

"I'm…I'm fine." She said, though she knew it wasn't true. Her legs had cuts and bruises on them, her knees bleeding. Her face stung from the slide she had done, the dirt rubbing against her cheek. She tried to push her body weight off of the ground, but it seemed as though none of her muscles wanted to listen to her commands. Every muscle in her body ached with pain.

"Those wounds don't look fine to me!" Tidus said. He quickly ripped the bottom of his shirt and tied it around her leg to help stop the bleeding. "We should probably take you to the clinic."

"What's going on here?" Coach Wakka appeared carrying several blitzballs in hand.

"Coach!" Gippal exclaimed with a startle. "She got hurt during the game. We need to take her to the clinic!"

"Yeah yeah! I heard the whole story from Ralana and the other girls in the gym. They said how they tried to help her, but she wouldn't let them!"

_What! Ralana said that! That little…! I swear I'm gonna kill her!"_

"Anyway, we still need to get you cleaned up. Go ahead and take her to the clinic, but only one of you!"

Tidus and Gippal looked at each other. Coach Wakka glared at Gippal. "Ah, you go ahead Tidus. I'll catch up with you later." He walked off onto the track and resumed his jogging with the rest of the class.

Yuna shook with nervousness. _I can't believe it! It's going to be just him and me! What do I do? _He squatted down beside her and gently lifted her arm around his neck. Standing up slowly she placed her feet on the ground, leaning on him for support.

"You're pretty shaky." He said. Yuna laughed inwardly to herself. _Yeah, and it's because of you!_ His right arm wrapped carefully around her waist for more support. At this point, she was still in too much pain to take much notice of it. Inside the gym, Ralana gasped as she saw the two walking by the open doors.

"What, what are you doing Tidus?" She shrieked.

"The Coach asked me to take her to the infirmary." Ralana growled. Turning on her heel she raced outside towards the field, ready to fuss about the situation.

About five minutes later Yuna and Tidus were in clinic. A nurse gently placed alcohol on the open wounds. Yuna winced in pain. Next the ointment and bandages were applied. Soon after the nurse left in order to call her father to pick her up.

Yuna stared down at her now treated wounds, refusing to look to her left. She could feel his gaze on her. It was making butterflies flutter throughout her stomach. "So…" He spoke, breaking the ever deafening silence. "Do you feel better now?"

"Yeah." She wasn't sure if she could talk without fumbling over her words.

"We haven't really talked much…I mean, we were kind of interrupted at the party. I don't even think I introduced myself. I'm Tidus."

"I know. Gippal talked about you."

"He did, did he? What did he tell you?"

"Oh, nothing bad!" Yuna laughed nervously. "He just told us that you're the team captain."

"Really…" There was a pause. "Will you tell me something?" He asked.

"What?"

"Gippal and I were watching the softball game. I saw you hit the ball and race to the bases. One thing still concerns me though. When you got towards second, what happened. Did you trip over yourself or did someone nearby do it? A gust of wind blew full of dirt and dust right at that moment, so I couldn't see anything."

"Someone trip me? I um…I uh…" Yuna stumbled for an answer. _I can't tell him that his girlfriend tripped me on purpose! It would be wrong!_

Tidus bent forward and placed his elbows on his knees, his hands clasped together in front of his face. "It was her wasn't it?" He finally said.

"Her?" She questioned.

"Ralana." Yuna turned away from him and stared at the snow white sheets on the clinic bed. "Listen, I'm really sorry about this." After a few more minutes of silence he spoke again. "I've had it! I'm gonna put a stop to this!"

"What?" Yuna asked.

"Yuna, thank goodness you're alright!" Braska walked into the room and hugged his daughter. "We need to get you home so you can rest." Turning his attention to the young man seated beside her he put a stern look on his face. "I suppose you're the boy her brought her here?"

"Yes sir." Tidus replied in a calm manner.

"I appreciate it. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to take her home."

"Of course." Just before he reached the door, Yuna called out to him.

"Wait!" Braska looked a little surprised. "What did you mean by that?"

"It meant exactly what I said." With that, he walked out of the clinic and down the hallway. Yuna sat, gazing at the now empty doorway. Braska began to question his daughter.

"Yuna, what did that boy mean? What were you two talking about before I got in here? Is he your boyfriend!" Yuna answered with a shocked no. In her own mind she wondered about the comment herself. _What did it mean._


	8. A Walking Invitation

Chapter 8

A Walking Invitation

The next day at school, Yuna wore jeans to cover up her scrapes on her legs. They were healing, but she still didn't want them to show. She knew people would ask her questions. Luckily it had mostly scabbed over. Rikku had been over at her house all night listening to the whole story. Yuna felt as though she wouldn't be able to hear out of her ear for a week after all the screaming she did. The blonde kept telling her that her that her wounds were wounds of true love that had been edged into her flesh. Thinking it sounded a bit too poetic for Rikku, she interrogated her on it. In the end, she found that she had read in a school play last year.

As she was getting her books out of her locker, a shadow covered the light shining behind her. Turning around she saw that it was Ralana. She glared at Yuna in hate. "You better watch your back bitch. You don't want another accident to happen." She pushed Yuna with her shoulder, into the locker, and walked away, her gang of preps following closely behind her. Yuna glared at her retreating back.

_What's her problem? It seems no matter what happens things just continue to get even worse. I swear, if she calls me that one more time I'm gonna kick her sorry-_

"Yunie! What's wrong?" A happy blonde girl bobbed her head up beside her. "How's your leg?" Yuna turned her attention back into reality and smiled.

"Oh, my leg…It's great! It's healing up already!"

"Yunie!" She exclaimed. That's not good! It's supposed to turn into a scar so the burning passion of love will forever flow within you!"

"Stop Rikku!" Yuna replied laughing hysterically. "Poetry doesn't suit your personality!"

"It could!"

"Couldn't!"

"Could!"

"Give it up!" They ran off down the hallway laughing as they continued their playful argument.

Most of her classes were pretty good the whole day. In P.E. they were split into two groups, one going in the gymnasium, the other to the track. Yuna's team was sent outside, but she didn't mind. As they jogged around the track they got to watch all the guys playing football in the center. She could barely contain herself when she saw Tidus and he waved to her. She shyly waved back, feeling her cheeks blush. She couldn't help but laugh when Gippal saw her too and waved, but wasn't paying attention and had the ball smack him right in the head. Tidus immediately raced over to help him. Gippal laughed embarrassedly and wiped the grass from his pants. The guys started teasing him. He turned around with the ball and hit one of them in the face. Then a whole fight broke out. Most of the guys who weren't even involved kept jumping in just for fun.

"Cut it out, cut it out, ya!" Wakka came striding out of the gym. "Was goin on here? Will someone tell me about it, ya?" The guys immediately broke apart. "Who started this whole thing, ya?" All of them pointed to Gippal. "I should have known…"

"Sorry?" Gippal smiled innocently. Wakka walked over to him and grabbed the football.

"You can sit out the rest of the time!" He pointed over to the benches beside the track.

"Yes sir." Gippal responded with sullenness.

"Wait! Captain Wakka!" Tidus ran up to the coach. "It wasn't his fault. I hit him with the ball first and then everyone else started laughing so he threw it at them."

The red-haired man looked between the two. "Is that so? Fine then. Both of you can sit out, but don't go causing anymore trouble now, ya?" The two friends walked over to the side and sat down on the dark blue benches, laughing.

"You didn't have to do that man! I would've been fine! Did you think I would get too lonely?" He began flailing his arms on Tidus, pretending to cry. "Oh, I don't have any friends! Please stay with me! Wagh!"

"Shut up! That's not even close to the reason why!" He pushed Gippal off of him and stared out across the field.

"Ohhhhh! I get it now!" Gippal smiled slyly.

"You get what?" Tidus asked.

"Could the reason you wanted to be over here have to do with a girl who happens to have brown hair and is walking this way?"

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Tidus turned his face away.

"Don't play dumb with me! It's written all over your face!" He laughed and glanced across the track. "Hey Yuna!" Tidus immediately jerked his head around and glared at Gippal.

"What'd you do that for?"

"Relax…It'll be okay. Is the star player nervous?"

"Of course not, it's just that…"

"Hey Gippal!" Yuna called out cheerfully as she approached the benches. "What's up?"

"Oh, not much. Just sitting here with my good friend." He smirked and evilly looked out the corner of his eye to his friend. Yuna looked to the spiky-headed blonde next to him.

"Hey Tidus." She said nervously.

"Hey…So…how's your leg?" He asked.

"It's a lot better now thanks to you." Yuna looked to the pavement in awkwardness. "I mean, you helped me to the clinic and everything."

"I'm glad." A moment of silence fell between them. Everything was tense, except for the lounging Gippal who sat in silence, watching the scene as though he were in a movie theater.

"Can I ask you something?" She finally questioned. Tidus looked at her. "Um…what exactly did you mean yesterday when you said-"

"Exactly what I said, that's what." He cut her off before she could finish. Gippal just stared at them, trying to understand what was going on. Just then the whistle blew. "We should get going. You don't want to be late for the next class." He stood up and stretched out his arms.

"Right." Yuna turned around and headed off towards the locker rooms, glancing over her shoulder one more time at him, only seeing his retreating back in the opposite direction.

The rest of the day she sat wondering still, if it meant he was going to break up with Ralana or not. _Then again, he could have meant something different…_

"Whoo hoo! Yunie? School's over!" Rikku waved the palm of her hand back and forth in front of Yuna's face. She snapped out of her daydream and stood up.

"Sorry about that. I guess I zoned out there for a minute." Rikku followed her to her locker, skipping and humming the whole way. As Yuna put her books away she gasped.

"What?" The blonde cried out in surprise.

"My folder's missing! Where did I leave it?" Her thoughts swarmed throughout her head. "I know I had with me…" Suddenly a thought struck her. "Oh crap! I left it in the girl's locker room!" She turned to face Rikku. "Look, just go on ahead without me. I'll talk to you later on tonight."

"Are you sure? I can come with you if you want."

"No, it's fine. I don't want to hold you up."

"Okay. I'll call you at four. I've got some great plans for this weekend! You'll love it!"

"Alright! I'll see you later! Bye!" She smiled as her peppy friend walked off down the hall. "Now, to get my folder…"

Yuna walked off slowly towards the gymnasium, passing the excited students as they left school, ready to head to the movies and the mall. "I'm so stupid. I can't believe I left it in the locker room of all places!" As she drew closer she didn't see a single person in sight. It seemed as though the entire school had been abandoned, however, she could hear the sound of music coming from the gym. The closer she got, the louder it became. "Well, to get to the locker room I have to go past where the music's playing. I really hope it's not Captain Wakka. He makes me nervous."

She quietly crept to the edge of the outside wall and peeked through the open door. "This is the weight room…I don't even see anyone in here." She quickly passed through it to the door on the other side of the room. Pushing it open, she walked in, releasing her held breath. Just as the door shut behind her she heard another one open. _What was that? Is someone out there? Crap! Why do things like this always happen to me! I don't want it to look like I was trying to steal something!_

Slowly, she reached for the handle of the door and gulped. _I get my folder after I check this out. _She could feel her palm sweating out of nervousness. _Just open it slowly, only to where the room is somewhat visible. I can do this._ She pulled it open slightly, peering through a small crack, allowing a limited amount of light to filter through on the floor. She glanced around the room. She could see the figure of a person, but couldn't make out who it was. She opened the door slightly more, in an attempt to find out. She gasped. A guy was lifting weights on the bench press, radio playing, and water and towel beside him. The only thing was, it was Tidus. His blonde hair was darkening as the sweat dripped down the sides of his handsome face. He gritted his teeth as he pushed the weights back up, exerting all his strength.

Yuna sat in silence, as though in a daze. He had his shirt off. She stared at his tanned skin, watching his muscles ripple each time he forced the bar up. His muscles tensed, tightening themselves, showing off his masculinity. He placed the bar back on the pegs and let his arms fall down beside him. Suddenly, Yuna heard a noise behind her and turned around to look. She let out a breath when she saw nothing there. _That was close! I could have sworn something was gonna happen…now…_

She turned back around to peer through the crack, only to find that Tidus had vanished. _Where did he go?_ She nervously thought to herself.

"What'cha doin?" A deep voice whispered. Yuna jumped. She looked above her to where the voice had come from. She fell backwards onto her rear.

"Ti…Tidus?! Oh, uh…hey! What's happening?" She laughed nervously. She could feel the color rushing to her face. He gazed down at her, a smile on his face.

"I could ask you the same question." He extended his hand to help her get up. She took it, feeling his warm palms against hers. "What, were you spying on me?" She immediately let go of his hands and fell back a second time out of surprise.

"No! Of course not! I was just getting…my uh…my folder!" He laughed.

"Calm down. I'm just picking on you!" He pulled her up off the floor in a quick gesture. When she rose she was quite close to him. She quickly turned around and started off towards her locker. He stared at her curiously, but quickly followed in pursuit.

"You do realize you're in the girl's locker room, right?" Yuna asked as she stopped and began turning her combination lock.

"Yeah, but there's no girl's in here, so it's not a problem." He placed his hands behind his head and leaned against the wall.

"Excuse me?" Yuna asked.

"I mean, of course you're a girl…you know what I mean."

"I know. I thought I would just try my hand at the joke this time." A moment of silence fell between them yet again.

"So, what's in your folder?"

"Oh, it's just a project I have to do. It's due tomorrow and I've barely started so I'll be working on it all night."

"Oh, that sucks."

"Yeah…well, I better get going. I've stayed long enough. I should get home before my parents start to worry about me." She tried her quickest to leave. She knew her head must've looked like a cherry by now.

"Hey, wait a second!"

"What?" She turned around.

"Would it be alright if I walked you home?" He scratched the back of his head and smiled.

"Uh, aren't you working out? I don't want to get in the way…"

"You're not. I can work out anytime I want to…not that I need to." He smirked in a cocky manner. Yuna laughed. "I'm just kidding." They walked out into the weight room. He grabbed his T-shirt and bottle of water.

"Well, you really don't need to workout…" Yuna said quietly more to herself than him. However, he had heard her.

"Thanks." He smiled slyly at her. She blushed. They walked out of the gym and to the side of the school. The sun was shining brightly, beating down on their backs. Tidus' sweating back glistened in the light. He didn't want to put his shirt on because it was so hot outside. Plus, he enjoyed the looks Yuna kept giving him every now and then as the glanced out the corner of her eye at him. He was completely oblivious to all the women on the streets who were whistling and eyeing at him. Yuna was well aware of it though.

"Um…not to be rude or anything, but do you think you could put your shirt back on?" Tidus looked at her.

"Why?"

"Everyone's staring at you!" For the first time, Tidus glanced around him, finally taking notice of all the women gazing at him. "Not to mention the fact that we're almost to my house. My dad would kill me if he saw me walking with a shirtless guy. I'd be grounded forever!"

He quickly pulled his shirt over his head and smiled. "Is that better? I wouldn't want you to be grounded. Plus, first impressions are always important!" Yuna turned to look at him.

"What do you mean…first impressions…are you…?"

"Hey! How'd you like to go to the movies with me tonight?" A woman called out. Tidus smiled at her.

"Sorry, but I've already got someone." He gently wrapped his arm around Yuna, causing her face to explode with color.

_He's touching me! I can't believe it! His arm is actually around me!_ They stayed that way all the way until they were out of sight of the eye-hungry women. It kind of saddened her when his muscular arms left their place around her. She sighed.

"What's the matter?" He asked.

"What? Oh, nothing! Don't worry about it!" Several minutes later they

reached the front of her driveway.

"This is your house? It's really big!" He stared at the large columns.

"I'm sure you're house is bigger. I mean, size doesn't matter to me as long as you can have a room for all the most important things. I prefer smaller homes, but we got this one because of my Dad's job."

"Hm…that's cool." Just then the front door opened. Yuna's mom came striding out of the house, a plate in her hand.

"Why, hello there! I don't believe I've ever seen you before! Would you like a cookie?" She held out her plate of freshly baked goods.

"Thanks." Tidus replied as he reached for one.

"So, what's your name?"

"Tidus."

"Oh, what a handsome, strong name that is." She giggled and glanced over at Yuna, who had her face hidden in her hands.

"Don't you think it's about time you headed on home? It's getting late!" She cried out, slapping him on the back. He glanced at her.

"He doesn't have to leave yet! Why don't you stay for dinner?" Her mother had crammed a cookie in Yuna's mouth, which now went flying out in shock.

"WHAT?!" She cried out.

"Dinner sounds good. I'd love to stay."

"It's settled then. I'll go ahead and start preparing the food. Yuna, you can show him around the house." She quickly turned on her heels and walked back into the house.

Tidus smiled down at Yuna. She was fuming. He laughed at her. "I hope you're happy!" She yelled.

"Of course I am!" She glared up at him. He then leaned down next to her ear and whispered, "Do I make you that nervous? If so, you're not the only one…" With that said he stood back up and continued on toward the house. "Are you coming?"

_Did he just…Does he mean that I…I make him nervous…_

She quickly followed him and they walked inside, closing the door behind them.

**I just want to say that I apologize for the long wait in the update of this story. Thank you so much to the people who have patiently waited. You're the greatest!**

**P.S. The next few chapters are gonna be great! Stay tuned!**


	9. Embracing Dinner

Chapter 9

Embracing Dinner

Sunlight shone through the large windows in the foyer of the house. The light reflected off the silver chandelier, creating a brilliant flash of rainbow colors to be emitted from the dazzling crystals hanging down. The beauty of them seemed to resonate throughout the room, creating a sense of calm and wonder on objects new and old. Tidus whistled. "Now this is one fancy house!" He glanced around at all the items nearby. A large couch sat close to the wall, a grandfather clock ticking beside it. Large paintings hung about, their colors bringing out the very best of colors in the room.

"A little too fancy if you ask me…" Yuna muttered.

"Are you not used to living like this?" He asked her curiously.

"Yeah…my old house was much smaller than this one. We had a nice sized yard, and smaller rooms. The smallness of them seemed to make it feel much homier. I had lived there my whole life until now. The community always got together, helping one another out at the first sign of a problem…"

"It sounds really nice…"

"Yeah, it was…" She closed her eyes in remembrance.

"You miss it a lot, don't you…?" Yuna opened her eyes and glanced over at him.

"I do and I always will, but I can visit anytime. Besides, I'm starting to like it here." The two sat in silence for a minute before Yuna interrupted with a gasp. "Sorry, I guess I should show you the rest of the house. Otherwise, Mom might throw a fit!" Tidus laughed and stood up, following closely behind her. At each and every room, he would make a comment. He began making jokes about them all, too. When they reached the upstairs Yuna laughed embarrassedly.

"Don't laugh!" She said seriously. "This is my room!" She slowly turned the door knob and opened the oak door. Several articles of clothing hung about her desk chair, her bed made gently, the pillows only slightly disarranged.

"I wouldn't laugh at your room. There's nothing to laugh about. It looks like any normal teenage girl's room." He walked farther in and began to look at the pictures on her dresser. "Who's that a picture of?" He asked in curiosity. Then he turned to look at her over his shoulder. "Why is his arm around you? Is that your boyfriend?" His tone sounded a little angry.

"No! That's just my cousin. He's a bit strange. He had a crush on me when we were kids and still has trouble letting it go. It's so wrong." She shivered at the thought.

"Oh, I got a little worried there for a minute." He ran his fingers through his blonde hair and turned back around. Yuna blushed slightly. _Worried? Was he really worried about it? Does…does that mean what I think it means?_ "Hey, who's this funny looking little girl?" He pointed to the next photo. Yuna choked.

"Funny-looking? Who're you calling funny-looking? That's me you jerk!" She whipped the picture away from him.

"Relax, I was just kidding! Everyone has pictures like that. Trust me. One time my mom had to bring out the baby pictures when all my friends were over. Man…that was so humiliating…" He placed his hand over his face, remembering that horribly tragic day. Yuna relaxed and regained her composure and nervously smiled.

"Sorry about that. I didn't mean to react that way. It's just, well, you know…" She stared down deeply at her carpet as though its pattern had suddenly fascinated her mind greatly. Tidus smiled and walked closer towards her.

"I know, but…" He bent low, right next to her face. "You have absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about. You look cute with whatever face you make." Yuna's heart began to pound in her chest. She could smell the scent of his cologne wafting throughout the room. _It smells so good…_

"Yuna!" Her mind snapped out of its dreamy state immediately.

"Yeah Mom?" She called down.

"Dinner's ready and your father's home, too!"

"Okay! We'll be right down!" She backed away from Tidus and laughed. "I guess we should head down then. Let's go!" She turned around and made her way out the door, but halfway down the hallway Tidus grabbed her hand. She stopped abruptly.

"I wasn't through talking with you yet." He said slowly. "There's something else I want to say…"

"Tidus, what-?" However, before she could say another word her father appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Yuna? What are you doing?" He looked curiously at the two, noticing their held hands."

"Nothing! We were just on our way to dinner, isn't that right?" She smiled innocently. Tidus immediately released her hand and smiled as well.

"It's nice to meet you sir. I'm Tidus." He walked forward and shook his hand.

"Yes, I do believe I saw you before…" He thought back and then quickly answered. "That's right! It was you! You're the one who helped my daughter out that day when she was injured. I must say thank you!"

"It was no problem sir." A silence surrounded them quickly.

"I guess we should head on down to dinner. We can talk more there." He quickly turned around a descended to the first floor. Yuna kindly smiled at Tidus who followed behind her to the dining room.

The table had a beautiful arrangement of flowers aligned in a row for the centerpiece. Napkins were wrapped in silver clasps, the silver snug inside. Yuna's mother walked out from the kitchen and smiled. "Now everyone, take a seat and I'll bring the dinner." Braska walked over and touched her shoulder gently.

"You go ahead and sit down. I'll serve dinner." She smiled back at him graciously.

Yuma sat at one side of the table, Tidus taking the chair beside her. Her mother relaxed in a chair in front of them. "So, Tidus, what did you think of the house?" She asked him curiously.

"It's beautiful ma'am. You've done a great job with the decorating."

"Well, I didn't do all of it! Most of the credit goes to Braska! He's the one who did all the work!" She laughed just as Braska walked in carrying plates of steaming food.

"I did most of what?" Braska asked,

"I was just telling Tidus about how you decided on the décor for most of the house."

"You noticed it?" Braska asked curiously.

"Yes sir. My father used to make things like it all the time. I used to watch him when I was little."

"Really? That's fascinating! I would love to meet him. Does he still accept work?"

Tidus seemed to hesitate in his answer. "He…he stopped a while back…"

"That's a shame…" Braska sighed.

"The food will get cold if we just keep on like this! Everyone, dig in!" Yuna's mother smiled as she unrolled her napkin and placed it gently in her lap. "So Tidus, I hear you play blitzball?"

"Yes ma'am." He replied nervously as he cut into his steak.

"I remember when you used to play blitzball, Braska. I would go to every game and cheer for you the whole time. You used to love that! Sometimes I would even stand up and lift—"

"Ah ha, ha! Let's not get carried away! Yes I remember. No need to tell what I still know!" He scratched the back of his head and sighed. "So, what's your role on the team?

"I'm the captain sir."

"The Captain? That's a pretty important role. You must be good then."

"He is! I've seen him play before!" Yuna spoke out loudly. She gasped at her outburst. "His team always wins." She continued quietly.

"Well, if my daughter believes you have a good team then it must be true." With the conversation finished, he turned to his plate and began to eat. Several minutes went by before anyone spoke.

"So, Tidus, do you have a girlfriend?" Braska stared at him through stern eyes. Yuna gasped. This was what she wanted to know. What was his answer going to be? She didn't even realize that she had her fork stabbed through her steak and was just staring at Tidus, awaiting his answer. However, Yuna's father noticed this.

"Yes sir, I do." He lowered his eyes to his plate and continued eating. Yuna slowly cut away her piece of meat and placed it in her mouth. It tasted stale and old to her now, as though the cow itself had been upset and crying at its own short and sorrowful life.

Yuna's mother watched the whole scene in silence. She had seen her daughter's devastated face at the news. She knew she had to say something. Giving a shy smile she said, "Well, if I do say so myself, I think you two make a very cute couple!"

At this comment Yuna choked on her water, Tidus on his steak. The two were sent into fits of coughing and wheezing. Finally able to catch their breaths they laughed.

"That's funny Mom!" Yuna laughed in embarrassment. Tidus looked at Yuna for a few moments before turning back to his plate and continuing in silence. Finally the meal came to an end and the dished were cleaned and the leftovers put away.

"Thank you for inviting me to dinner. I enjoyed it! You're a lovely cook!" Yuna's mother smiled kindly.

"Thank you! We enjoyed your company! I'm so glad our daughter's made such nice friends!"

"Yes, it was very nice meeting you. Perhaps I'll go see a blitzball game sometime. It's been awhile since I've been to one."

"It was nice meeting you sir. I'd like that." Braska held out his hand for Tidus to shake. They clasped them together and smiled.

"Yuna, why don't you show him outside?"

"Okay." She headed towards the front door, Tidus following behind her. She opened the door and they stepped outside. The two headed toward the end of the driveway and turned to face one another. "I'm sorry about everything that happened in there."

"There's nothing for you to apologize for." He stared up at the light blue sky.

"Tidus…I thought that…well…I thought that you had…" Yuna stuttered. She didn't know how she wanted to word it, but she just wanted to ask him about Ralana.

"What?" He looked at her a little confused, but amused at the same time. He sighed. "I'm sorry…" He said as he turned away from her and began to walk away. Yuna looked at his retreating back in confusion.

"Wait! Tidus, I…" She stumbled yet again over her words. However, before she could think of what to say he had turned around to face her, grabbed her arm, and pulled her gently toward him in an embrace. Yuna's arms remained at her sides, for she didn't know what had just happened. She could feel the rising of his chest from breathing and his heart beat. It calmed her own racing heart back to a steady pace. Seconds later, the moment ended. Tidus quickly pushed her away.

"I'm sorry…" He said one more time, before turning around and racing off as fast as he could. Yuna just watched as his figure blended in more and more with the city around her.

When she reached the inside of her house again, Yuna locked the door behind her and stared at the floor. Just then her mother appeared in front of her. "What's wrong Yuna?" Her mother asked gently.

"Oh, mom…" Yuna gazed up at her mother's face, tears forming all around her eyes. "I don't know what's going on! I'm so confused!" She couldn't hold it in any longer. She collapsed to the floor, tears falling on her legs, sliding to the carpet. Her mother raced towards her and wrapped her arms around her in a motherly embrace.

"Come on Yuna. Let's go upstairs to your room. You can tell me all about it." She helped her daughter up the stairs and down the hallway. When they reached her bedroom, Yuna fell onto the bed, hiding her face in her pillow. "Now tell me, what's wrong?"

Yuna gasped several times before replying, trying to hold the tears back. "That's just it! I don't know!"

"It's that young man isn't it?" She asked. Yuna's eyes glazed over. "What's going on between you two?"

"That's what I don't know! He makes it seem like he likes me, but then he talks about his girlfriend! She's a witch who hates me and he knows it, but he still hasn't done anything about it like he said he would!"

Yuna's mother watched her daughter in sorrow. "I don't know the whole story, but it sounds to me that something might have happened. He might still mean to break up with this girl, but maybe something came up at the moment. Perhaps he said he still has a girlfriend because it wouldn't make a very lovely dinner conversation to say that he did, but was about to break up with her."

"I know, but it's just that…he doesn't know how it makes me feel!"

"You don't know that! He may know exactly how you feel because he feels the same way!" She waited a moment before continuing to see if whether or not her daughter had anything to say. "Trust me Yuna, emotions seem so complex and incomprehensible at times, but really, they're easy to understand and figure out. We as humans, just make them more difficult than they are. The next time you see him, just act as you normally would. Try and get him to really talk to you. Much of the time men want to talk to a woman, but they are afraid she will reject them for their weakness. Their hearts are just as fragile as ours, though it may not be as visibly seen."

Yuna let out a few more sniffles before sitting up off her bed, placing her pillow in her lap. She reached up to her face and wiped her tears away. "Thank you Mom. I feel much better now." She smiled. "I think I'll try to talk to Tidus tomorrow about everything. I have to get it straightened out one way or another."

"That's my girl!" Her mother reached over and hugged her.

"Oh, and one more thing!" Her mother looked at her curiously. "Don't tell Dad about this. You know how he would get if he knew I was crying about a guy."

They laughed. "You're right! You're still his baby girl! I think no matter how old you are it's going to be difficult for him to see you dating any man!"

The door clicked to the apartment. Tidus walked inside and turned the light on in the kitchen as he walked through. "Hello? Mom I'm home!" He called out. As he walked into the living room he heard sniffles. "Mom?" He called again. He headed towards the bedroom off to the side and saw her figure sitting on the edge of the bed, facing away from him. He raced over towards her side. "What's wrong?"

She looked at him, her makeup running down the sides of her face. "It's him…it's your father!" She couldn't say anymore. She let her tears flow down like a cascading waterfall. She turned to her son and buried her face in his shirt. Tidus closed his eyes and wrapped his arms gently around his mother the setting sun causing the room to grow darker as every minute passed.

**Sorry for the long wait everyone. Exams were killing me and I had to work a lot. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it! Prepare yourselves because big events are coming your way!**


	10. Withered Love, Blooming Friendships

Chapter 10

Withered Love, Blooming Friendships

Mother and son sat in silence for a long period of time, neither saying a word to the other. The sky had grown completely black now, the moonlight shining in through the open window, showering the two in its mystical silver light. Tidus finally lifted his mother away from him and looked at her. "Tell me what happened." He said in a gentle, yet forceful voice. She choked back her tears and gulped. Turning away from him, she placed her feet on the floor and stared out the window. He watched her, awaiting her reply.

"Your father…he called the house…I didn't know it was him when I picked up the phone, but I found that out soon enough." Tears fell down the sides of her rounded cheeks, though her face stayed emotionless. "He immediately began calling me disrespectful names, making fun of me, and telling me what a horrible wife and mother I was! I screamed back at him in defense, but he only increased in volume and in words…then he…he threatened me…"

Tidus had remained completely silent until he heard this. "He what? What did he say to you?" He looked at her with an intense gaze. 'Tell me mother! What did he say?" She glanced away from her son and squeezed her eyes shut.

"He threatened to come over here and…and that he would hurt you!" Tidus blew up in anger at this. He turned right around and slammed his fist through the wall.

"That bastard! How dare he call here and make threats when he's the one that caused all the problems in the first place!" He turned back around to face his mother. "I swear to you mother, I won't let him do anything to hurt us! If anyone will be hurting, it's gonna be him!"

"Tidus!" His mother called out in a trembling voice. "Don't you even think about doing anything foolish! If you go out there and commit a crime of any kind I will never forgive you!"

"But Mom…!"

"There are no buts about it!" Tidus clenched his fist until his knuckles turned white. "Please…I want what's best for all of us." He released his grip and looked down at his mother still seated on the edge of the bed.

"I know." They stared at eachother for a long while, an understanding between them no one else could ever begin to understand.

Clouds covered the sky, blocking the sunlight from reaching the earth below. A bright flash of light shone through the sky, followed by a low rumbling. The pitter patter of rain could be heard hitting the metal drains along the sides of the school building, forming large puddles of mud.

Yuna raced towards the nearest entrance into the school, trying to avoid the rain that was about to pour down at any moment. Just as she reached the stairs, her foot fell in a small hole covered by a puddle. She fell on her side and collapsed in the brown, murky water. "Ugh, this is just great!" She exclaimed, picking herself up off the muddy ground. She tried to brush off some of the brown on her clothes, but knew there would be a stain all day. "What a great way to start off my day!" She quickly raced inside the building just as the rain came down in torrents.

"Good morning Yunie!" A squeal sounded from the other end of the hall. Yuna looked up just in time to see Rikku bounding towards her. However, her shoes were slippery from the rain and she instead, slid all the way past Yuna and into the nearby lockers. "Ow! That hurt!" She peeled her face off the metal, a large red grill-like mark across her nose.

"It seems you're having as great of a morning as I am!" Yuna laughed and told her about her accident outside. The two went into hysterics at their clumsiness.

"Aw, don't tell me I'm missing out on a joke? I love a good laugh early in the morning!" An amused voice sounded from behind the two girls, startling them. It was Gippal. His hair was a little less spiked than usual because of the weather, his clothes a little damp.

"Would you stop scaring us like that! You always have to sneak up on me!" Rikku exclaimed loudly.

"I can't help myself! It's just what I do!"

"Is that so?" Rikku pressed on. "I don't see you doing it to Leblanc!" In saying this she seemed to have struck a little nerve.

"Hey! Don't talk about our relationship! You don't know anything about it!" Rikku seemed taken aback by his comment.

"Sorry! I just thought you might spend your time sneaking up on your girlfriend more than on some other random girls!"

"Don't you dare call her my girlfriend!" Rikku grew even more confused. Her mind twisted and turned in all directions. Yuna watched the argument, not daring to say a word.

"What are you talking about then? I'm so confused! Are you with her or not?!'

"NO!" Silence filled the hallway. People nearby stopped and stared at them. Gippal laughed nervously. "Nothing to see here! We're just practicing for the upcoming play!" He laughed and then turned back to Rikku when everyone else had continued on their way. "Look, I just don't want you to talk about it so loud okay!" Rikku just looked at him, an unreadable expression across her face. "You see, she likes me, well, more than likes me. She's pretty much obsessed. She follows me like a puppy on a chain, except I'd do anything to hand the collar over to anyone else."

"So you don't like her then?" Rikku asked in a small voice.

"She's an okay person I guess, but for a relationship, she's way too desperate. I tried to make her break up with me one time by cheating on her, but she still wanted me back. It doesn't work the other way around either. She still followed me constantly."

"You jerk!"

"What?" Gippal looked at the blonde in confusion.

"How dare you cheat on a poor girl who's in love with you! If a guy did that to me I could never forgive him! She deserves someone better than you!"

"You'd understand if you were in my situation!"

"Would I?"

"Yes! What if I was constantly following you around and you hated me, but I wouldn't go away no matter how hard you tried, what would you do?"

"I…I…" She had a hard time answering for she liked the idea of Gippal following her around all the time. "I'd say STALKER!"

"What?! That's completely off topic! I said what would you do, not what would you say!" He seemed as though he could barely control himself now. He raised his fist and hit the locker next to him. People around them stopped yet again and stared at the two. Yuna didn't know what to do, or even what she could possibly say. "Look…all I'm trying to say is—!"

"Gippal!" Leblanc jumped out from a nearby classroom and wrapped her arms around him. "I finally found you!" She kissed him on the cheek and smiled flirtatiously.

"I'm not in the mood Leblanc…" She stared at him, but wrapped her arm in his arm. "Isn't it about time you found your own life?" She quickly looked up at him.

"What's wrong with you sweetie?" She asked lovingly. He pulled her hands off his arm and turned to face her. "Don't play so mean to me." She said in a seductive voice.

"STOP IT!" He yelled out at her. She gasped. Every person in the hallway turned to watch the intense scene. "I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!"

"You can't take what?" Leblanc asked.

"YOU!" He pointed his finger angrily at her in an accusing manner.

"What…me?" She asked, getting a little flustered.

"YES, YOU! ALL YOU DO IS FOLLOW ME AROUND! I'M SICK OF IT! CAN'T YOU SEE IT! I DON'T LIKE YOU! YOU OBSSESS OVER ME AND ALWAYS DO EVERYTHING I DO! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! I DON'T WANT TO BE WITH YOU ANYMORE! LIVE YOUR OWN LIFE! NOT MINE!" He glared at her with fury.

Leblanc just stared at him, then to the floor. Tears were brimming at the bottoms of her eyelids. "Is that how you really feel?" She whispered quietly. She didn't wait for an answer. Turning on her heal she raced off down the hallway, her cries echoing through the silent corridor. Mumbling broke out among the crowd. Gippal just kept staring at the place Leblanc had been standing at moments before.

Rikku strode over to him and said his name. He looked up from the floor to meet her furious gaze. "HOW DARE YOU SAY SUCH A THING TO HER! YOU MAY NOT LIKE HER, BUT YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO HUMILIATE HER IN FRONT OF EVERYONE LIKE THAT! IF YOU HAD JUST BROKEN UP IN PRIVATE THINGS WOULD HAVE BEEN MUCH BETTER OFF! BUT NO! YOU HAD TO GO AND SCREAM YOUR HEAD OFF AT HER! YOU'RE SUCH A JERK!" With that, she reached her hand out and slapped him across the face. She turned and raced off after Leblanc, leaving Gippal in a frozen state. He didn't move. He just stared at the floor, a glazed look coming over his eyes. Yuna didn't know what to do. Finally coming to a decision, she decided to let Rikku talk with Leblanc alone and she would handle Gippal.

The hallways were crowded as usual, so Rikku had to dodge in and out of people in order to follow after Leblanc. _Boy! For such a lovesick girl, she sure can run!_ As she was running, she saw the tail-end of Leblanc's coat curling around the corner, heading outside. She quickly pursued it, arriving underneath the school's blitzball stadium. As she drew closer, she saw that the girl had come to a stop. She sat down on the bench behind her and began crying loudly, completely out of control.

"Leblanc!" Rikku called out. She reached the bench and let out a long sigh. "You sure do run fast! I'm wiped!" She collapsed onto the bench beside the distraught girl.

"What do you want? Get away from me you loser!" Leblanc retorted angrily at the blonde.

Rikku turned to look at her. She stared at her for several seconds, making eye contact. Then she drew her hand back and slapped her. "I'm getting really tired of having to slap people today!" Leblanc held her cheek and stared at Rikku in shock. "Now listen to me! You need to stop being so rude to other people! Just because I'm not in your little group, doesn't mean anything! You shouldn't treat others badly because of that! Your parents aren't in your group, so are they losers? Don't you get it? I'm the same as you! We all are! Sure, we have different things we like and dislike, but we're all still humans. We each have feelings. Some let it show more easily than others."

"Are you here to lecture me?" Leblanc asked angrily.

"No! I'm here to tell you how things are in reality. You live in your little dream world all the time! Have you ever thought for yourself? You always do what Ralana says! You need to realize that you have your own life! You're in control of what you do!"

Leblanc stared in wonderment. "My own life…"

"Yes…I know what Gippal said was rude, but part of what he said was true. You need to live your own life Leblanc. Don't follow what someone else tells you to do. Just be yourself. Life's so much easier and more fun when you are! Sure, I'm a little crazy sometimes, but that's the part of us that makes us unique. Gippal said that stuff because he does care about you, but he's just tired of watching you waste your life away by listening to someone else. Plus, you were a little too obsessed with him." Rikku laughed a bit at the end of her last statement.

"I was, wasn't I?" Leblanc laughed through her tears, wiping them from her face, putting on a smile. "You're right. Thank you Rikku. You've been so nice to me this whole time even though I've been rude to you all along. How can you ever forgive me?" She looked down at her hands clasped tightly against one another.

"Don't worry about it! The fact that I was able to put a smile on your face is all that I need!"

"Thank you so much!" Leblanc threw her arms out to the side and wrapped them around Rikku in a friendly manner. Rikku hugged her back and smiled.

"So, does this mean we're friends?" Rikku asked curiously. Leblanc looked away quickly. "Hey! Don't you even think about what Ralana would say! This is your life! You can be friends with whoever you want!"

"That's right…Sure. I guess we are friends!" She smiled and Rikku jumped up and hugged her a second time. Suddenly, the clearing of a throat echoed under the bleachers. Rikku jumped off the bench in fright.

"What was that?" She cried out. She turned around quickly to see Yuna and Gippal. "What did you do that for? You're so insensitive!" She screamed at him.

"Sorry…I didn't mean to scare you…honest." He seemed to be stuttering and struggling with his words. Rikku stared at him for a moment.

"What do you want?" She finally asked.

"I'd like to talk with Leblanc for a moment…" He replied. Rikku glared at him.

"Okay then…talk…we're listening." Gippal stopped nervously moving his foot across the ground and looked at the blonde.

"Alone." He added simply. Rikku rolled her eyes and began to walk past him. Just as she got close to him, she muttered under her breath so that only he could hear her words.

"You better watch your back! If you do anything to hurt her a second time, I'll do more than just give you a measly slap!" He raised his eyebrows.

"Is that a threat?"

"You know it!" Rikku answered as she followed Yuna outside.

Gippal sighed and turned back around to face Leblanc. He walked towards her and sat down on the bench. "So…how's it going?" He asked casually.

"Good, how about you?" She asked in a monotone. Gippal looked at her and then closed his eyes for several seconds before turning to her.

"Listen Leblanc. I'm sorry for what I said. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. It was rude of me and I know it humiliated you. I know I can't make it up to you, but please, try to forgive me in some way. I wish there was something I could do."

"Gippal…" She placed her finger on his lips to quiet him. "I know. Rikku told me everything. She told me what you wanted to tell me all this time. She said I needed to have a life of my own and make decisions for myself."

"Rikku…she said that?" He asked. Leblanc nodded her head.

"Look, I know it's never going to work out between us, so I think you're right. It's time we finally closed the lid on this relationship. Besides, I've had my eye on several future possibilities."

"So, this is really it, huh?" She stood up and turned around to look at him.

"Don't tell me you're sad?" She asked in an amused voice.

"No, I'm not sad…I just can't believe it's finally over! I've never felt so happy before! I'm a freeman and it feels good!" He jumped off the bench and struck a pose. Leblanc raced over and hit him atop the head.

"YOU COULD AT LEAST ACT A BIT UPSET YOU JERK!" Gippal rubbed the top of his head.

"Would everyone please stop doing that?" He cried out angrily. However, several minutes later they were laughing.

"Hey! The rain's stopped!" Rikku exclaimed.

Yuna and Rikku had been sitting in the stadium seats until the blonde had shrieked when she sat down due to water seeping through her pants from the wet seat. Yuna laughed at her distresses friend, apologizing quickly from the look she gave her. Within several minutes they heard laughter. They turned around to see Gippal and Leblanc walking out together. "So?" Yuna asked.

""It's officially over!" Leblanc declared with a smile.

"We're still friends though of course. I mean, after all, who wouldn't want to be friends with someone as handsome as myself?" He laughed manically. Leblanc smacked in the head a second time.

"Don't push your luck!" She yelled at him. "Well, thank you so much for what you've all done! I appreciate it so much!" She bowed and then began to walk away towards the school building.

"We should be heading back in too. We'll see you around Gippal." Yuna waved to him as she and Rikku left the stadium. Rikku simply glared at him as she walked past.

"She's still mad at me…" He sighed slowly. "Why does this always happen to me? WHY IS THE WORLD SO CRUEL TO ME?!" He cried out into the air. A bird flew out of a nearby tree, scared by the suddenness of his voice, kindly releasing a dropping on his head. Gippal sighed again. "Yevon hates me…"

Throughout the rest of the day, Yuna didn't see Tidus in any of her classes. She grew worried. _He's probably just sick or something. It's the flu!_ When she was leaving her class to go to lunch she heard a door slam open and people gasping. She quickly turned around to see what the commotion was about, when she herself gasped. There stood Tidus. He wore an old, torn up shirt, his hair wet and floppy from the rain, and cuts on his knuckles and his face. Yuna hardly noticed it when her books fell from her hands to the floor.

"Tidus! What happened to you?" She raced over beside him. He stared down at her for a minute before pushing past her.

"It doesn't concern you." He brushed her hand off his arm and continued forward.

"Tidus…" Yuna said slowly under her breath. She watched his retreating back until it disappeared behind the crowd of students continuing on to class.

**Hello everyone! I just thought I'd let you know that I'm going to try and add a new chapter every weekend. It will be either Saturdays or Sundays. I might not be able to do it at some point soon because we're moving. I'll do my best to keep it every weekend for as long as I can. We probably won't move until July, so we've got a little while. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Don't worry, I'm working on Chapter 11 as I type!**

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	11. Moogling in the Past

Chapter 11

Moogling in the Past

Yuna stared off in silence as Tidus exited the hallway. "What could have possibly happened to him?" She wondered. She knew that she shouldn't follow him. The cold reply he had given her was a definite sign that he wanted to be left alone right now. Not knowing what else to do she raced off to find Rikku.

A young blonde-haired girl sat on the railing of the stairs outside the school, swinging her leg back and forth as she stared up at the blue sky. The sun reflected off the green swirls of her eyes, causing her to squint at its bright light. "Why does school always have to be so long?" She sighed exasperatedly.

"Because they love to torture us!" A voice sounded from down below in front of her feet. She glanced down. She screamed and practically fell over the railing.

"What? How…why…how is a stuffed animal talking to me?" She managed to say in a trembling voice. A small stuffed moogle sat staring up from the ground at her. "You're not an actual moogle are you?" She quickly reached down and picked it up, shaking it around in all directions. She finally stopped, breathing heavily. "If it was real it would have already cast a spell on me for doing that!" Suddenly she caught her eye on a small metal device. She looked closely at it and smiled. "So, someone's trying to play a trick on me, now are they?" She carefully glanced around the perimeter of the area. "A speaking device such as this one can only be used within a five meter radius." She thought quickly. Suddenly her ears picked up a small high-pitched sound. "That's it!" She jumped over the railing and headed straight toward the bushed nearby. "Ah ha! I found you!" She smiled as she jumped out, surprising the person sitting behind them.

"What?" The figure turned around quickly at the outburst. Rikku gasped.

"Gippal? What the heck are you doing?" She stared at him in confusion.

"I was just…uh…how did you find me?" He asked.

"Hello! A device like this is so easy to pick up it's a joke! Any Al Behd can hear its sound when it resonates from the source. Even you should know that!" Gippal scratched his head in embarrassment.

"Oh, yeah. I should have thought of that." A silence fell between the two where they sat and stared at eachother. Rikku finally spoke up.

"So, why are you making a moogle talk to me? Is this your idea of some kind of a joke?" She waved the moogle back and forth in the air as she spoke in an annoyed tone.

"No! Of course not!" He made his response seem more like a nervous outburst than anything else. Rikku stared at him.

"Oh yeah…then what was it?"

He looked carefully at her stern face and then at the sky. "Well I…I…I'm sorry!" He bowed his head low to the ground. Rikku raised her eyebrows.

"You're sorry?" She asked a little surprised.

He lifted his head back up to face her. "I know you're mad at me and you probably hate my guts right now, but please just listen!" She remained silent, waiting for him to continue. "What I did to Leblanc was rude. I'm sorry that I did it, but I can't take it back. I didn't mean to hurt anyone. I just…I just blew up and I couldn't control myself anymore! I'm sorry Rikku…I don't want us to keep on this way…I…I want to be able to talk to you again." He looked away from her, his face turning slightly red, hiding in the sun's bright rays.

Rikku stared at him a little while longer before responding. "Gippal…" She finally managed to say. '"I…I'm going to keep this moogle." She stood back up and began to turn around.

"Thanks for forgiving…Hey! Wait a minute! Did you hear anything of what I just said?" He yelled out. She quickly turned around and brought her head down next to his ear.

"I heard every word." Gippal just stared, gulping from nervousness. "Thank you." She turned back around and started to walk off. He watched her retreating figure.

"So, I guess this means you forgive me, right?" He called out after her. She waved her hand in the hair, not turning around.

"Maybe." She simply replied.

"What?" He cried out. He slumped his shoulders down and sighed. "Ugh…I need to come up with another plan."

Yuna gasped, placing both her hands on her knees in exhaustion. She glanced back in forth across the courtyard looking for Rikku. Finally she spotted her next to the fountain in the center. "Rikku!" She called out to her. The blonde quickly looked up, dropping the moogle to the ground when she caught sight of Yuna's face.

"Yunie! What's wrong? What happened?" She questioned quickly. Yuna gulped.

"I don't know what happened…I don't know what to do?"

"Calm down Yunie. It's okay. Tell me everything!" Rikku sat her friend down and waited patiently for her breath to return.

"It's Tidus! He…he…"

"What happened to Tidus?"

"He came into school late and he had cuts and bruises on him! When I asked him what happened he pushed me away and said it didn't concern me! I don't know what to do!" She hung her head low in desperation.

"Yunie…" She wrapped her arms around her in a friendly embrace. "Maybe he just needs some time alone. I don't know what happened, but I'm sure there's a good reason for it."

"I know there is, too! It's just, I don't want to see him this way. It scares me!"

"I know Yunie…" She closed her eyes. Suddenly, she jumped off the concrete siding of the fountain and gasped. "I've got it! Maybe he would know!"

"Who?" Yuna asked quickly.

"Come on Yunie! Let's go!" She reached down for her hand and dragged her off toward the front of the school.

The two girls raced past the stairs and towards several bushes. Rikku called out, "Gippal!" A blonde-haired guy jumped up from the ground where he sat sulking.

"Rikku! What are you doing back?" He asked out of surprise.

"Wow, I can't believe you're actually still here."

"What's it to ya?" He asked in annoyance.

"Anyway, I was wondering if you could help us!" Gippal noticed Yuna for the first time now and sighed.

"What do you need help with?"

"It's Tidus! Please!" Yuna cried out. Gippal immediately took note of her worried expression and sat back down on the grass.

"Did something happen?" He asked.

"He came in to school late and when Yunie saw him he had cuts and bruises on his face!" Rikku replied quickly.

"He what?" Gippal asked in surprise. "Did you ask him about it?"

"He told her that it didn't concern her!"

Gippal gazed down at the ground in thought. "I wonder…" He said slowly.

"Please, do you know what happened to him?" Yuna asked.

"Well, I don't know exactly what happened, but I might have and idea that's close to the actual reason." Yuna and Rikku both sat patiently waiting for him to continue.

Rikku glared at him. "Well, are you going to tell us are you just going to sit there and watch the grass grow?"

"I'm getting to it alright?" He yelled back defensively. "Anyway, by what you've said that's definitely not his usual self. If he got into just a street fight he would have told someone about it. He doesn't push people away from something as simple as that. There's only one reason that he would act like that…" Gippal looked up at the two girls before him.

"Why?" Yuna asked quietly.

"Look, I don't know if I should be the one telling you this or not. Tidus might not want me to. It's really personal to him. It took him awhile before he ever decided to tell me." Gippal seemed uncertain.

"Whatever it is, I promise I won't tell anyone else!" Yuna blurted out. Rikku nodded her head in agreement. Gippal stared for a moment at the two of them, noticing Yuna's determined eyes. He let out a breath.

"Alright, I'll tell you. This might take awhile to tell you though."

"Just get on with it!" Rikku yelled out at him. Gippal glared at her.

"Fine! Geez! Calm down!" He regained his composure and carefully looked each girl in the face. "You see, I met Tidus when we were eight years old. He was always a happy kid, always laughing and making jokes. However, the thing I didn't know was the reason he did it so much. His mom worked at the nearby hospital as a nurse and his dad worked with a woodshop. It wasn't until a little bit later that I found out that his dad had actually been a pretty famous blitzball player in his youth."

"Really? So that's why he's so good!" Rikku exclaimed.

"Yeah well, that has nothing to do with it. See, his family started to go through some hard times. Their money was running extremely low. His father had been kicked off the blitzball team at 26 and had lost a large part of his salary because of it. His mom didn't make all that much money being a nurse. His dad got a job at the woodshop and didn't any better of a salary than she did. Some many things started to go wrong from there on out. Every night, his dad came home drunk. He dragged his body home and collapsed on the couch, hiccupping the whole time. Tidus told me that he remembered watching from the bedroom door as his father came home so late at night. He got so angry at him for leaving his mother alone for so long."

"As the months went by it only got worse. His father got home even later and now his tie was loose and his jacket wrinkled. He even smelled of perfume. One night his mom decided to stay awake and wait for her husband. At around three that morning she heard a car door slam shut. Tidus heard it, too. He sat at his door, peering through a small crack. His mom looked out through the blinds at the driveway, only to have her heart torn apart completely."

"What was it?" Rikku asked in a whisper.

"Tidus's dad stood out on the driveway with another woman. Tidus told me she looked to be about twenty-five years old. He even remembers what she was wearing."

"What was it?" Rikku asked curiously.

"Does it really matter?" Gippal replied back.

"Yes!" The blonde cried out defensively.

"Fine! She had on dark red stiletto hills with ribbons that tied around the calf, a mini skirt, and a corset. She had long black hair that was over on one shoulder while his father kissed her neck roughly. She was smiling and giggling. His mom watched as her husband pushed her against the side of the car kissing her even more. They broke apart soon and his mom had to turn away from the window when she saw the young girl buckling his belt for him. About ten minutes later he walked into the house and headed for his bedroom. When he got there he was a little surprised to see his wife still up. He asked her what she was doing and she just simply stated that she couldn't sleep. He then asked her if she need some help in getting tired and walked over and started trying to kiss her. She immediately slapped him across the face. 'What was that for?' He screamed at her. Tidus said he had gone out of his room and sat out in the hallway peeking through their door. His mom screamed back and told him about how she knew he was having an affair and that all he was, was a drunk."

"His poor mother…" Rikku said slowly.

"Tidus watched them scream back and forth at one another, but then something unexpected happened. His father reached out and struck her across the face, causing her to fall to the floor. He stood over her and began kicking her in the side, beating her without a second thought as she cried out in pain. Tidus couldn't take it anymore and raced in the room to help his mother. He jumped toward his dad and began punching and kicking him in the leg as hard as he could. His father just laughed a told him he was just a pathetic excuse for a son as his mother was for a wife. Tidus picked himself off the ground and began muttering a single phrase under his breath. Not understanding him, his father told him to speak up and be a man. Finally Tidus stood up straight and yelled, 'I hate you!' His dad laughed and punched him in his stomach. He told him that he was tired of living in this dump with this trash of a family. Then he said he was leaving."

"His mom didn't say a word as her husband packed up several suitcases with a few clothes, but mostly alcohol. He slung the cases over his shoulder and turned around with a smile. 'It was fun while it lasted, but I'm afraid I've got to move on better, younger things. If you need me don't bother to call. I'll be too busy with my three new wives!' Then he turned right around and walked out the front door."

Yuna sat in silence. She didn't know what to say. "Tidus said he watched his father leave. He sat by the window and watched. He saw the car from before drive up. The girl got out again and walked over to help him put his luggage in the trunk of the car. As she leaned over to put it down her skirt came up quite a bit, revealing a lacey thong. His father reached over and grabbed her arm with his right hand, his left working its way up her thigh and under her skirt. No one else lived nearby so her loud giggles disturbed no one except for Tidus and his mom. The next thing he knew his dad had pulled the corset off her and her skirt. She didn't have a bra on or anything. He saw her fall into the trunk and his father crawl in after her. The next thing he saw was the car moving and her moaning."

"From that day forward Tidus has hated his father with every part of his heart. He hates it if someone just says his name. He told me it was unbearable watching his mother as she listened to the two of them outside. She just sank to the floor and cried. Ever since then she's worked extremely hard. She works two jobs. One at the hospital and another as a waitress. It's very hard to come by a lot of money. That's why Tidus helps out a lot and does major construction jobs with several businesses. They pay him a pretty good deal."

"I…I had no idea….Tidus…" Yuna stood up from the ground. "I have to talk to him!"

"You can't do that! If he finds out I told you he'll kill me! He hates it when people look at him with pity!" Gippal cried out.

"I won't tell him you told me! I just have to talk with him!" She cried out a second time.

"Yunie…I think what Gippal's saying is right. We should just let him be for now and see how he is tomorrow. If things aren't better in the next few days then we'll think of something to do. Right now though, I think he needs some time to himself."

Yuna stared down at Rikku. She closed her eyes and sat back down on the grass. "I just…I just don't want him to go through something like this alone." Gippal looked at her kindly.

"You know what? Tidus made a good choice." He smiled.

"Choice? What are you talking about?" Rikku asked.

"Nothing. Don't worry about it." He smiled at Yuna. "Hey, I have an idea. I think we could get a few answers out of someone about this. They might know something we don't."

"Really? Who?" Yuna asked with excitement.

"Let's go to your house Rikku!" Gippal said with cheerfully.

"What?" She cried out. "My house?" She looked over at Yuna who was staring at her curiously. "I mean, why does it have to be my house? We could go anywhere else." She glared over at Gippal.

"Oh, you know why!" Gippal said smugly.

"Now that I think about it, I've never been to your house before Rikku." Yuna stated.

"Is that right?" The Al Behd laughed nervously.

"I guess we should head out!" He replied as he stood back up.

"Right now?" She asked in a small voice. Gippal turned around and stared at her in disbelief.

"Yes right now! I don't know why you're so worried about it! She's gonna find out sooner of later anyways!" He said while rolling his eyes. Rikku sighed in defeat.

"Fine!" She slowly dragged her feet along behind him. Yuna stared at their retreating backs curiously.

"I'll find out what?" She wondered curiously as she followed them.


	12. Relations of Discovery

Chapter 12

Relations of Discovery

The sun was setting as a maroon car drove silently down the road. Gippal sat in the driver's seat, Rikku beside him, as Yuna stared off at the endless fields from the back. No one spoke. All that could be heard was the tires rolling against the burning pavement from the heat of the sun. The wind blew roughly against the windshield as they increased in speed.

"Gippal, how do you know where Rikku lives?" Yuna asked quietly from the backseat. He glanced up at the rearview mirror at her face.

"Let's just say I'm an acquaintance of someone who lives there." That was all he said. Yuna decided not to ask anymore questions because she noticed Rikku looking extremely uncomfortable every time she asked something about her house. They drove for another thirty minutes before turning right onto a long driveway. Yuna gasped as they continued on forward very slowly. A large house came into view atop a grassy, green hill. White fences surrounded the house, a beautiful garden with a fountain in the center visible. Bricks covered all the walls, windows decorated with intricate designs.

"This is your house?" Yuna asked in amazement.

"Yeah." Rikku answered sharply and quickly. Gippal locked the car doors and walked over towards the blonde.

"Would you just relax? Everything is going to be fine. Just calm down, alright?" He patted her gently on the shoulder and continued on toward the front door. Rikku trudged slowly and grudgingly behind him. Yuna followed a short distance behind, unsure as to what was troubling her friend so greatly.

Gippal reached the front door and turned around to smile at Rikku, "After you." He said, motioning his arms forward into a bow.

"Fine." She reached in her back pocket and pulled out a key. Sticking in the doorknob, she twisted it to the left and walked inside, the others falling in behind her. Yuna gasped. She could hardly believe the room she was standing in. It was beautiful. She had never seen anything quite like it before. The room was circular, large roman columns around the outer ring, holding up a grand staircase that spiraled down on both the left and right sides of the room. It had its own flavor with the addition of different types of machina surrounding the walls. It was the definite giveaway of their Al Behd lineage.

"Come on. This way." Rikku spoke suddenly, breaking through Yuna's previous thoughts. She headed toward the stairs to her left only to be stopped a moment later by a male's voice calling from the room ahead.

"Rikku? Is that you?" A balding man appeared, a toothpick protruding from between his lips. Goggles lay about his neck, long gloves up to his elbows on, black grease covering his clothes. He smiled when he caught sight of the group. "Well, would you look at this? It seems you've got a new friend!" He smiled at Yuna in a friendly manner. Then he caught sight of Gippal. "Well, if it isn't my best man!" He smacked him hard across the back and turned to face Yuna. "You know this kiddo right here? Well, he's the best worker I've had in a long time. Ain't no better mechanic! He's a natural when it comes to machina!"

Yuna simply smiled, unsure what would be the best reply. Finally Rikku spoke up. "Yeah Dad, that's really fascinating. Can we go now?" She gazed at her father with an empty stare.

"What happened to you? Someone woke up on the wrong side of their hoverboard this morning!" Rikku rolled her eyes.

"Would you stop trying to make machina jokes? They're getting worse by the day!" She called out after him. He just dropped his head back in laughter as he walked back through the door and disappeared around the corner. "Anyway, let's hurry up and get this over with!" The blonde turned on her heel and continued up the stairs. Yuna glanced over at Gippal who gave her a small reassuring smile.

The second floor landing was a long hallway, portraits lining the walls all the way to the end. As they walked toward the end, Yuna counted six bedrooms. She couldn't understand the uses for having so many rooms. Finally they reached a large oak door. It was ornately designed with flowers carved deeply into the wood. She hardly had any more time to observe her surroundings as Rikku stepped in front of her, breathing in deeply. She lifted her hand and knocked on the wooden door in a hesitant manner. A voice sounded from the other side, a sharp in its tone.

"Yeah? Who is it?" Thoughts raced through Yuna's head.

_I've heard that voice before…but where? I know I can't be imagining it._

"It's Rikku." She replied sourly. There was a pause.

"Do you need something? If not, then please leave."

"I need to ask you something…" There was a shuffling from inside and then footsteps coming towards the door. It flung open. Yuna gasped. She couldn't believe who was standing before her eyes. The girl standing before her seemed startled as well. Yuna couldn't say anything. She simply stared, as did the girl before her, her nemesis, better known as, Ralana.

"What the heck is she doing here?" Ralana finally managed to ask. Rikku grimaced.

"You'll find that out in a minute." She answered back tartly. Yuna quickly turned to her friend.

"Rikku? Why is…how is…?" She didn't know exactly how to word her question. The blonde sighed out in desperation.

"Ralana's my step-sister. My mom passed away a long time ago. My Dad started dating again and eventually married another Al Behd woman who also had a daughter." Yuna saw it now, the swirling green eyes, the bronze skin, the usual blonde hair that they all seemed to have. She didn't understand how she hadn't figured it out sooner.

"I knew my mother shouldn't have married such an oaf as your father!" Ralana snapped quickly. "She would have been much better off without him!"

"How dare you say that about my father! He's the greatest man in the world! Any women would be lucky to have him! I only wish he picked a woman more deserving of his kindness, rather than his money!" Rikku screamed back in defense. Ralana gasped. Gippal threw his arms between the two bickering girls.

"Whoa there! Calm down you two, would ya? Arguing isn't going to help anyone out, okay?" He stared from one to the other until they both nodded reluctantly in agreement. "Now, let's get what we came for."

Rikku looked from Gippal back to her sister. "Look, we came here to ask you about someone…"

She glanced from Rikku to Yuna. "Why would I tell you anything? I'm not saying anything to help out _her!_" She glared menacingly at Yuna.

"Don't you dare start that!" Rikku yelled back. Yuna placed a hand on her shoulder and shook her head. Stepping forward, she stared Ralana right in the face.

"Look, I know we got off to the wrong start, but we really need you help."

"Don't even try that on me! Your sorry little words aren't going to do a thing for you!"

"I know that." Yuna smiled in a contented way, refusing any sign of frustration to appear across her face. "I'm not trying to be friends with you. I'm only trying to get answers from a fellow person whose interests are the same." Ralana stared at her, unsure as on what to say. Finally finding words, she replied.

"And what kind of interests are those? What could we possibly both be inter-?" She started, but was soon cut off.

"Tidus." Yuna simply stated. Ralana stared at her, obviously contemplating what she had just said.

"Tidus? What about him?" She finally asked.

"We wanted to know if you knew anything that could help us out. Did you see him at all today?" Yuna asked curiously.

"No, I looked for him, but I never found him."

"Well, I saw him this morning. He was cut, bleeding, bruises on his fists and part of his face. When I asked him about he told me it wasn't for me to know." When Ralana didn't say anything she continued. "I was hoping that you might know something about it…"

Ralana looked away from Yuna and stared out the window as if unsure whether to answer or not. "So, he ignored you too, huh?" She finally asked. Yuna stared at her. "He's done that several other times. He would never speak to me." She glanced down quickly at the floor.

"I know about his father." Yuna stated carefully.

"Yeah, good old dads, right? Always there for you when you need them." Her head swarmed with different emotions, unable to sort them out. "You know, my dad left my mom, too. He loved her, but he loved money more. He left us without a second thought when opportunity to make a fortune struck him like a gong. I was only five years old…that was the last I ever saw of him…"

"I'm sorry." Yuna replied in a gentle tone. Rikku stared at her sister, feelings of sorrow and resentment mixed together.

Suddenly, Ralana started to laugh. "I don't know why I'm telling you all of this! It's not like me!" The room fell into silence once more. After several minutes of debating thoughts, she spoke again. "He hates his father. Well, more so he despises his existence entirely. I was really worried the first time he did that."

Yuna looked up quickly, noticing her use of the past tense. "The second time, I decided to follow him after school…It was cold that day. Snow had started to fall. He was walking though the streets in Luca. Followed behind him, keeping sure I kept out of his line of vision. No one was out shopping that day. The city almost seemed deserted." Gippal and Rikku took seats on the chairs a few feet away, listening intently to every detail. Yuna stayed where she was, refusing to move, afraid she might miss something vitally important if she did.

"At the time, he was about sixteen years old. We weren't going out yet, we were only friends then. I followed him through several alleys. I had never seen this part of the city before. It scared me. It was dark and musty. Finally, I emerged onto a street. It wasn't very wide, but definitely bigger than the alleyways had been. I noticed women walking around in a manner I had never seen before. Snow had begun sticking to the ground and yet, there they were, in groups of two or three wearing mini skirts and tank-tops. Some just wore lingerie. I was absolutely horrified when I saw a man sitting in a corner rubbing the bare leg of the women sitting in his lap. He winked at me."

Yuna looked at Ralana with understanding. To a girl her age it must have been absolutely terrifying to see such things, let alone to have a man who was doing something private so public and wink at her. In a strange way, she felt she was beginning to understand Ralana and her complex personality.

"Immediately ran forward and avoided all eye contact I could manage. I was scared. I had lost sight of the direction Tidus had gone. I didn't have long to look because I heard arguing from around the corner. I raced to the side of the building and peered around it. Lights were streaming out from a club shining out across the snow. Two men stood outside the entrance and pushed a boy down. I realized it was Tidus once the lights reflected onto his face. He was yelling up at them. I couldn't make out what they were all saying, but I heard him say something about his father. The two men I figured were bodyguards. I was terrified when they started to beat him. There was nothing I could do. If I went out there I would only make the situation worse."

The sun had begun to set outside, casting an orange glow throughout the bedroom. Ralana gazed out the window at the vanishing horizon. "As they kicked him one last time I heard him yell at them, 'You tell my Father that one of these days, he'll pay for everything he's done!' After that, the men laughed at him and walked back inside, leaving alone the cold snow that was starting to come down even harder. I didn't know what to do. He picked himself up and brushed the blood away from his face and started limping back in my direction. I quickly hid in another side alley as he passed. Then, as I turned to leave…"

She stopped in mid-sentence. Yuna noticed water beginning to form at the rims of her bottom eyelids. At that moment, she knew Ralana had broken down. She was confessing things extremely personal to her that had changed her life. Gippal suddenly stood up. "I think I'll go downstairs to see if Cid needs help with anything." He quickly turned around and left, closing the door behind him. Ralana gazed over to her stepsister.

"You chose a great guy Rikku." She half-smiled. Rikku's cheeks burned a light red as she thanked her quietly. The room had grown quite dark, the sun almost completely gone below the horizon, the moon taking its place. Ralana once more took to staring at the sky.

"On my way back, I made sure to keep Tidus within my range of vision, keeping my distance from him, too. Just as I was making my way through the wider alley, someone grabbed me. I turned around to see a woman. She had long brown hair and blue eyes. I refused to look at her face out of fear and looked at her clothing instead. I knew I was in trouble then. She had on stilettos, a black and red corset top, and extremely short shorts. She brought her hand beneath my chin and looked at my face. Then she said, 'You've got a very attractive face for such a young age, not to mention you body, too. Come with me.' She grabbed my hand and pulled me across the street into the building all the other women had been standing next to."

Yuna and Rikku could hardly believe what she was telling them. Never had they imagined something such as this happening to her. They knew it best not to interrupt her, for they knew she was having a rough time talking about it to start with.

"When we got inside, she handed me to group of two girls and told them to dress me. I didn't know what to expect. I was too scared. They brought me into a side room. One of them began rummaging around in a large closet that looked to be filled with skimpy clothes. The other began pulling my clothes off me. I cried out in fear and asked them what they were doing. The one dressing me, whose name was Claudia, simply smiled at me and stated that I was requested. I had no idea what to do then. Soon I was standing there completely in the nude. The woman in the closet threw out several things to Claudia who began to redress me. As she clipped a lacey, transparent, black bra on me she commented, 'Dallia was right. You do have a great rack.' Of course I was embarrassed by her comment, but being who I am, I was pleased with myself.

The woman in the closet, Angelia, soon came out with a pair of red stilettos and a matching thong. She handed them to Claudia and smiled warmly at me. 'Don't be scared. I was your age when the same thing happened to me. You remind me a lot of myself.'

Claudia let out a snicker, 'Your rack was never so big though!' Angelia hit her atop the head with the tall heel of the shoe she was carrying and turned back toward me.

'As long as you follow the advice of the women around you and do as you're told, you'll be fine. Trust me.' She bent down and strapped the shoes on both my feet, annoying Claudia for making me taller, causing her to get up from the floor. As they messed with my hair I finally found my voice again.

'Don't you realize it's snowing out there? I'll catch a cold in these clothes!' I tried to find any excuse to get away from the place. They both smiled at me, finally deciding to leave my hair down, creating a long wavy look.

'Don't worry about it. Besides, you'll be much warmer in a little while. Then you'll be thankful for the snow.' Angelia bent down and pulled a black pleated skirt over my hips. 'Now you be careful with that skirt. It tears easily.'

I stared at her in confusion. 'Then why should I wear it?' Once again she smiled.

'It's not for you to tear, that's why!' That absolutely terrified me. I had known it was coming, I just didn't want to face it. Claudia quickly raced back over to me and pulled another thin, white shirt with buttons across the front on me. Then buttoned most of them except the one's near my breast.

'Alright. You're ready honey. Are you excited?' I stared at her in disbelief.

'Excited? How can I possibly be excited? You kidnapped me!' I could feel myself starting to cry I was so upset.

'Look, some of us have to make a living somehow!'

'I have a home, a mother! You can't just take me away like this!'

'Exactly! You do. We don't!' With that she pulled me down the hall and into a room farther down. Throwing me inside, she gave me one last small smile and whispered softly to me. 'I'm sorry. Things in this world are never fair.' Then she left the room, a click sounding from the door. I looked around the room. I was alone. There was a large bed on the left and a small bathroom on the right. I noticed there were small windows lining the tops of the room. I couldn't see out of them, so I stood up on the bed. I knew that it might be my only way of escape. I stood on my toes and peered through the glass pane. I sighed in disappointment. I was peering into another room, identical to the one I was in. I was just about to get down when I saw figures in the room. I gazed harder, trying to see what was going on through the dim light. That's when I saw it.

I saw the man first. He was on the bed, his back to me. Then I noticed the woman. She was on her back, the man on top of her. I soon saw that their clothing was strewn across the floor. She had her arms wrapped around his neck as he kissed her fondly at the neck. I saw him beginning to move and just at that moment I heard her starting to moan and gasp with pleasure. I quickly dropped back down to the bed, my heart racing. I was horrified. I kept telling myself that this couldn't be happening to me. My hands were shaking, my breathing fast.

Just then, the door to the room I was in swung open. I turned around to see who had entered and felt as though I were about to hyperventilate. It was the man who had winked at me earlier. He walked into the room and closed the door behind him. For a second time, I hear the click. My blood rushed through me so fast. I felt like I might pass out at any moment, but I refused to let that happen. He came towards me with a smile and whispered in a low voice to me. 'Calm down. Everything is alright. Just relax.' He now had a hand placed on both sides of the bed on either side of me, his face inches from mine. I was too scared to say anything. All I could do stare in fear.

I saw him glance up and down at my apparel, then he smiled. 'Well then, shall we get started?' I tried to run, scream, anything…but my body was frozen in place. I felt his breath on my neck, my breathing coming out in gasps. Evidently, he took that in the wrong way. He mistook my fear for pleasure. He immediately pushed me backwards onto the bed and jumped on top of me. He reached down and ripped the thin skirt off with ease and began rubbing his hand up and down my thigh. His other hand ripped off the shirt. I tried to fight back, finally gaining some of my body's will back, but not enough. As soon has he pulled his own shirt off, I could feel his excitement and desire from the sweat coming off his skin. Though I tried desperately to push him off, he pinned my arms down and tore the bra off with one pull. I saw him smile with satisfaction. Then he kissed my neck and continued down my chest. I gasped again, out of pure terror. Yet again he couldn't cipher the difference and became even rougher. He was kissing my stomach. I could feel his cold, slobbery tongue as it crept higher up onto my breast. With one last effort tired to force him off me. I was crying and screaming, banging my fists against his back in desperation.

Just when I had given up hope, the door swung open and a girl raced in, a gun in her hand. The man quickly looked up from my chest and stared at the figure. I couldn't tell who it was in the light, I just heard her voice. 'Get away from her now or I'll shoot!' She sounded as though she had been crying too. The man backed away from me slowly. As fast as I could I stood up and ran to the closet nearby, finding a warm cotton robe. I pulled it on quickly and ran towards my savior. I was finally able to see her face then. Her hair was blonde like mine, only shorter. Before I had time to ask questions, she told me to go out the door and continue down the hallway to a door on my right. I did as she told me to and soon found myself outside in the snow yet again. I collapsed on the cold ground and kissed it. I was so thankful to see the white snow again, knowing I was still just as pure.

In a few minutes, the girl raced out behind me and grabbed my hand. We raced through the alleyways for what seemed like forever, until we were finally back in Luca. I thanked her constantly, unable to show my appreciation enough. She smiled at me."

Yuna and Rikku were staring at her with pity in their eyes. Neither could imagine something so horrible happening to a girl her age. They could see tears falling down her face now. She lifted her hand and gently wiped them away. "Do you know who that girl was?" She asked them wondrously. Both looked at her waiting for the answer. "Donna. She had been taken, just like me. She had stolen the gun the man with her had, and threatened him with it. She had heard my screams and knew she wasn't the only one taken and raced off to save me."

They were speechless. Yuna had no idea what to say. "Look at me. I'm so pathetic. I can't believe I told you that. Next thing I know you'll be telling the whole school I'm a slut." She laughed. Yuna gave her a penetrating stare.

"I would never do something like that. Besides, you're still in tact. You're still as pure as the snow, remember?" Ralana stared at her. "You're not pathetic. I think you're pretty brave. You went through so much, yet, you kept going. That takes strength." They stared in silence back and forth at one another.

"Listen…I'm…I'm sorry. I'm sorry about everything I've put you through. I just…I just got jealous. I know Tidus and I will never be together. These past two years I've been noticing how he kept treating me more like a sister than his girlfriend." Tears started to fall a second time.

"Ralana…thank you. When I came here I never meant for all this to happen. I never wanted to have any enemies."

"I know." She replied simply. Rikku cleared her throat. When she looked up she had tears falling down the sides of her face, too. "Rikku…what are you crying for?" She asked lightly.

"I'm sorry…Sister!" She jumped forward and embraced Ralana. She seemed surprised at her action, but soon returned the feeling.

"Thank you Rikku. I'm sorry for everything. I know I've been rude to you and your father. I should be thankful that someone loved us enough to take us into their hearts." At this, Rikku quickly glared up at her.

"Though, at the beginning, I didn't love you in the least." Then she smiled and the two started laughing. Yuna smiled, too.

"I hate to break up the moment, but don't we need to get going? Gippal's been gone awhile now." Rikku gasped.

"Oh, that's right! I forgot!" They ran down the stairs out the front door to the front yard, where Gippal and Cid sat tinkering with several machina parts.

"That was an awfully long story." Gippal smiled as he stood up. "I fixed an entire hoverboard and started building one while you guys were still up there!"

"Shut up!" Rikku said, rolling her eyes.

"The boy's a genius!" Cid commented, clapping Gippal on the back. I wish I had a son like you!" At this, Brother appeared out of nowhere and turned abruptly, his face in a pout heading towards the house.

Ralana smiled. "Well, Dad. You just might yet, have a son like him." Rikku's turned as red as a cherry as she looked at a Gippal. He looked at Ralana in confusion at first, but in seconds gazed down at Rikku with a smirk. Cid looked at them curiously and then rolled his eyes as he heard Brother give an exaggerated cry in the distance.

"I better go and show that boy some tough love!" He replied, winking at them. Just as he began walking away, he turned back around. "Did you just call me Dad?" He asked in realization. She nodded her head. He smiled. "I like it!" With that he retreated toward the shed.

Rikku stood swaying back and forth. twiddling her fingers nervously. Gippal walked back over toward the hoverboard he was working on and began polishing the sides of it. As he did so he made an exaggerated pose, trying to show off his biceps. "So, how could someone like me possibly be a son to a family I'm not even related to?" He quickly rubbed the surface harder to make his arm bulge out more. Rikku glared at him furiously now, daggers piercing him through her eyes. She quickly picked up a nearby wrench and flung towards him. He picked up a tin lid and shielded himself. "Hey, that's dangerous!"

"Shut up! It's impossible for someone like you to ever be a part of this family!"

"Well, who would want to be part of such a violent one?" He called back as he ducked again.

"Alright you two! Stop right there! We need to get a move on." They looked over at her in surprise. "We have to save Tidus." Rikku dropped the wrench she was holding, Gippal the tin lid. Yuna quickly turned to Ralana.

"What do you mean, save him?" She asked, not sure if she wanted to know or not. Ralana sighed and looked her in the eyes.

"We have to save him from his father…"

**Hey Everyone!**

**I'm so sorry you had to wait so long for an update. We moved into a new house and we had to get the computers set up and then the internet wasn't working! So many problems! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed Chapter 12. Things are getting intense now! Be ready! The conclusion isn't too far away. Don't worry though, there are still a good many chapters left. Keep a lookout for updates! Thanks!**

**I appreciate the comments you leave me! It helps motivate me!**


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